THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 

OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


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MISSIONS  IN   HINDUSTAN; 


WITH   A   BRIEF 


\tuxi$tittn  at  t\t  Cjorantrg, 


AND   OF 


THE  MORAL  AND  SOCIAL  CONDITION  OF  THE 
INHABITANTS. 


BY    THE 


Rev.  JAMES  R.  CAMPBELL, 

MISSIONARY    AT    BAHARANT  UR,    NORTH    INDIA,    IN    CONNECTION    'WITH    THE    REFORMED 
PRESBYTERIAN  CHURCH  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES. 


Many  shall  run  to  and  fro,  and  knowledge  shall  be  increased. — Dan.  xil.  4. 


The  profits  of  the  work  devoted  to  Foreign  Mitiions. 


PHILADELPHIA: 

BOARD  OP  MISSIONS  OF  THE  REFORMED  PRESBYTERIAN  CHURCH, 
By   GEO.  II.  STUART,  Treas. 

No.  13  BANK  STREET. 

18  53. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1852,  by 

GEO.  H.  STUART, 

in  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  States  in  and  for  the 
Eastern  District  of  Pennsylvania. 


STEREOTYPED  BY  L.  JOHNSON  AND  CO. 
PHILADELPHIA. 


PRINTED  BY  C.  SHERMAN. 


-    ? 


INTRODUCTORY  NOTICE. 


An  earnest  desire  to  promote  increased  attention  to  the 
great  work  of  evangelizing  the  world,  has  caused  the  pre- 
paration and  publication  of  the  following  volume.  The 
respected  author  was  led  at  an  early  period  in  life  to  con- 
secrate himself  to  the  work  of  Foreign  Missions ;  and  since 
1835  he  has  been  actively  engaged  in  it,  nearly  all  of  this 
time  having  been  spent  in  India.  His  opportunities  for 
being  fully  acquainted  with  the  subject  he  discusses,  con- 
nected with  the  earnestness  and  perspicuity  with  which  he 
presents  it,  give  the  work  a  value  which  it  is  hoped  will  be 
properly  appreciated.  Several  well-known  friends  of  the 
cause  of  foreign  missions  have  given  assistance  in  its  pub- 
lication, whose  kindness  is  gratefully  acknowledged.  Our 
thanks  are  especially  due  to  Messrs.  Carter,  of  New  York, 
who  have  furnished  the  casts  from  which  the  illustrations 
have  been  electrotyped,  and  to  Mr.  Joseph  P.  Engles,  of 
the  Presbyterian  Board  of  Publication,  who  has  taken  great 
interest  in  the  work,  and  afforded  much  aid  in  preparing 
it  for  the  press.  We  hope  that  all  who  have  given 
assistance  in  the  work,  or  yet  may  aid  it,  will  find  in  the 
good  it  accomplishes  an  abundant  satisfaction  for  their  ser- 


INTRODUCTORY  NOTICE. 


vices.  The  general  circulation  of  books  of  this  character 
is  certainly  well  calculated  to  arouse  the  slumbering  disci- 
ples of  the  Saviour  to  a  sense  of  the  obligation  and  privilege 
of  "  preaching  the  gospel  to  every  creature."  The  apathy 
with  which  the  subject  is  viewed  by  the  great  mass  of  pro- 
fessing Christians  is  truly  painful  and  alarming,  and  excites 
the  fear  that  unless  the  church  "  repent  and  do  the  first 
works/'  in  imitation  and  emulation  of  the  zeal  of  primitive 
Christianity,  the  Saviour,  justly  displeased  with  such  dis- 
obedience to  his  authority,  and  such  indifference  to  the 
eternal  happiness  of  souls  perishing  for  lack  of  knowledge, 
may  "  come  quickly  and  remove  the  candlestick  out  of  its 
place,"  extinguishing  the  light  and  destroying  the  influence 
of  the  church  where  it  now  exists.  The  Board  of  Missions 
of  the  Reformed  Presbyterian  Church,  in  publishing  this 
volume,  hope  that  it  will  be  accompanied  by  the  Divine 
blessing,  and  made  effectual  for  the  great  object  which  the 
author  so  much  desires  to  advance,  and  to  which  no  real 
Christian  can  be  indifferent. 


PREFACE. 


After  all  that  has  been  published  of  late  years,  not  only  in 
the  Journals  of  Missionaries,  but  in  the  many  other  interesting 
volumes  that  have  issued  from  the  press  respecting  the  cha- 
racter and  condition  of  the  heathen,  and  the  duty  of  profess- 
ing Christians  to  send  them  the  gospel,  it  must  be  acknow- 
ledged that,  on  these  important  subjects,  but  few  as  yet  are  in 
possession  of  definite  information.  The  writer  of  the  following 
pages  has  long  been  convinced  that  this  is  a  principal  reason 
why  so  little,  heretofore,  has  been  felt  for  the  perishing  heathen, 
and,  comparatively,  so  little  done  toward  their  evangelization. 
This  impression  was  strengthened  during  -his  late  visit  to  Ire- 
land, Scotland,  and  the  United  States.  While  providentially 
called  to  appear  before  the  churches  connected  with  the  Re- 
formed Presbyterian  Synods  in  these  lands,  as  well  as  before 
many  other  Christian  churches,  it  was  expected  that  some 
account  would  be  given  of  the  missionary  work  in  India,  and 
of  that  peculiar  people  the  Hindus,  among  whom  he  has  long 
resided.  With  this  object  in  view,  the  substance  of  the  fol- 
lowing volume  was  prepared,  and  delivered  in  various  places 
in  the  form  of  lectures.  In  this  way  it  was  gratifying  to  think 
that  when  necessarily  absent,  for  a  time,  from  the  scenes  of  his 
former  labours,  some  good  was  accomplished  in  extending  mis- 
sionary information,  and  some  interest  excited  in  behalf  of  the 
perishing  multitudes  of  Hindustan.  As,  however,  his  stay  in 
the  United  States  was  short,  and  as  he  never  expects  to  have 
another  opportunity  of  pleading  the  cause  of  benighted  India 
in  a  Christian  land,  ho  has  been  induced  to  comply  with  tho 

1*  5 


6  PREFACE. 

urgent  request  of  many  of  the  warm  friends  of  missions  by 
sending  this  small  volume  to  the  press.  While,  therefore,  he 
gratifies  his  friends,  he  hopes,  even  when  on  the  other  side  of 
the  globe,  or,  it  may  be,  when  in  his  grave,  to  have  the  satis- 
faction of  contributing  to  a  cause  in  which  he  must  ever  feel 
the  deepest  interest.  It  is  his  prayer  especially  that  it  may 
be  the  means  of  promoting  a  missionary  spirit  among  the  youth 
in  Christian  families  and  Sabbath-schools.  These  are  the  fu- 
ture hope  of  the  church  and  of  missions.  In  them  he  feels  a 
deep  interest,  and  to  them  particularly  he  takes  the  liberty 
of  inscribing  it. 

Considering  the  number  of  works  on  the  peculiarities  of  the 
Hindis  that  already  exist,  it  could  hardly  be  expected  that  any 
thing  now  written  on  that  subject  would  possess  much  origi- 
nality. The  author  of  this  unpretending  work  has,  in  general, 
confined  himself  to  giving  a  narrative  of  facts,  as  these  came 
under  his  own  observation  during  his  residence  and  travels  in 
India.  He  has  found,  however,  among  the  writings  of  Sir 
"William  Jones,  Ward,  Duff,  Campbell,  Buyers,  and  others,  and 
also  in  numerous  articles  in  the  Journal  of  the  Asiatic  Society, 
much  that  is  interesting  regarding  the  religion  and  literature 
of  Hindustan;  and  when  the  views  thus  presented  have  ac- 
corded with  personal  observation,  he  has  been  happy  to  draw 
from  such  respectable  authorities,  though  he  has  not  thought 
it  necessary  to  occupy  his  pages  with  references.  Indeed,  on 
the  subject  of  the  religious  belief  of  the  Hindfis,  all  modern 
writers  have  been  in  a  great  measure  indebted  to  those  who 
have  unlocked  parts  of  the  immense  masses  of  Sanscrit  lore 
and  lumber, — of  folly  and  fiction,  which  are  embodied  in  the 
Shasters  or  sacred  books. 

Before  closing,  the  author  would  take  this  opportunity  of 
expressing  his  warmest  thanks  to  the  friends  through  whose 
kindness  and  assistance  he  has  been  enabled  to  carry  these 
pages  through  the  press.  May  the  Lord  bless  this  feeble  at- 
tempt to  promote  the  extension  of  his  kingdom  in  heathen 
lands. 

Sahdranpur,  North  India,  Sept.  26,  1849. 


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Ground  Plan  of  the  Mission  Church,  Sabaranpur. 


DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  VIEW  OF  THE  MISSION 
PREMISES,  SAHARANPUR,  NORTH  INDIA. 


The  view  is  taken  from  the  S.  E.,  near  the  point  where  the  catechists'  houses  are, 
and  which  cannot  of  course  appear  in  the  sketch.  Of  the  sketch,  we  may  say  it 
is  remarkably  correct  and  true  to  nature.  To  begin  with  the  church,  the  most 
prominent  building  in  view,  it  stands  midway  between  the  two  old  mission  houses, 
and  about  thirty  yards  to  the  west  of  the  front  line.  The  building  is  what  it  ap- 
pears to  be,  beautiful,  chaste,  and  substantial.  The  whole  is  built  of  well-burned 
bricks,  and  most  of  it  cemented  by  very  substantial  mortar  made  of  lime  and 
brick-dust.  The  inside  arrangements  and  plan  are  explained  in  the  accompanying 
diagram.  The  platform  in  front,  twelve  by  forty  feet,  is  reached  by  a  flight  of  six 
easy  steps.  At  each  end  of  these  wide  steps  is  a  square  block  on  which  lamps  have 
been  erected.  There  is  no  portico ;  but  four  pilasters,  two  feet  nine  inches  wide 
and  projecting  six  inches  from  the  surface  of  the  wall,  support  the  entablature  and 
pediment.  The  entablature  and  pilasters  extend  all  round  the  building.  Just 
over  the  door,  and  beneath  the  small  pediment,  a  slab  of  white  marble  is  inserted, 
with  the  following  inscription :  "  Reformed  Presbyterian  Church.  Built  A.  D.  1850." 
The  openings  for  a  clock  are  for  the  present  filled  with  false  dials,  well  imitated. 
The  movable  Venetian  shutters,  painted  green,  open  outside — the  glass  windows, 
opening  on  hinges,  fold  up  also  on  hinges,  and  fall  back  so  as  not  to  extend  beyond 
the  surface  of  the  wall  inside.  The  ball  on  the  spire  is  copper,  well  gilded  with 
pure  gold  by  a  goldsmith  in  Delhi.  It  is  three  feet  in  circumference,  and  looks 
well.  The  whole  building  is  finished  with  plaster  of  sand  and  lime,  and  looks  like 
gray  freestone.  It  is  greatly  admired  by  all  the  English  gentlemen  who  have  seen 
it — and  we  have  some  officers  of  the  Engineers  in  this  quarter,  of  the  best  taste  in 
architecture.  It  has  a  lightning-rod.  On  the  1st  of  January,  1850,  the  foundation 
was  laid,  and  it  was  opened  with  appropriate  religious  exercises  on  the  20th  April, 
1851. 

The  two  old  mission  houses,  built  in  1840,  and  occupied  by  Messrs.  Campbell  and 
Caldwell,  stand  one  on  each  side  of  the  church.  They  are  exactly  of  the  same  di- 
mensions, and  the  plan  of  both  is  the  same ;  but  in  consequence  of  an  accident 
happening  to  the  flat  roof  of  the  latter  the  year  after  it  was  built,  it  has  since  had 
a  thatched  roof.  The  verandahs,  and  other  parts  exposed  to  the  rains,  are  built  of 
burned  bricks,  but  all  the  inner  walls  are  of  common  sun-dried  bricks — the  whole 
finished  neatly,  and  plastered  outside,  the  same  as  the  church.  They  were  then 
whitewashed  also,  but  have  since  been  coloured  a  pale  yellmv,  as  more  pleasant  to 
the  eye  under  a  burning  sun.  These  verandahs  are  essential  to  the  coolness  of  a 
house,  and  afford  a  comfortable  place  to  sit  or  to  walk  in  the  shade.  All  the  outer 
doors  have  Venetian  shutters  opening  outside,  which  will  either  admit  light  or 
air,  or,  falling  down,  will  darken  the  room.  At  night  they  allow  a  free  circulation 
of  air  to  pass  through  all  the  rooms. — Mr.  Woodside's  house,  to  the  north  of  Mr. 
Caldwell's,  was  purchased  on  his  arrival  here.  It  was  then  in  bad  repair,  but  has 
been  much  improved.  It  makes  the  mission  premises  now  complete.  In  fact,  they 
are  now,  in  every  respect,  the  most  complete  of  any  I  have  over  seen.  The  mis- 
sionaries arc  all  together,  and  in  a  minute  can  meet  to  decide  any  important  ques- 

7 


1  I 

I 


8  DESCRIPTION  OF  THE   MISSION   PREMISES. 

tion  that  cornea  before  them.  The  church  and  English  school-house  are  both  in  the 
right  place.  The  latter  stands  on  the  side  of  the  public  road  leading  from  the  city 
to  the  civil  offices,  which  is  much  travelled.  The  Orphan  School  is  to  the  south  of 
Mr.  Campbell's  dwelling,  and  in  continuation  of  it,  with  the  exception  of  a  small 
yard  between.    It  cannot  appear  in  this  sketch. 

One  of  the  catechists  may  be  seen  giving  nasihat— religious  instruction— to  a  few 
inquirers  gathered  around  him.  The  woman  with  the  child  keeps  in  the  back- 
ground, according  to  the  prevailing  custom  in  India,  gome  of  the  boys  are  playing 
in  the  verandah  of  the  school-house.  The  house  just  behind  Mr.  Caldwell's  is  the 
tent  and  tract  depository.    Near  the  above  is  a  sun-dial. 

GROUND-PLAN  OF  THE  MISSION  CHURCH,  SAHARANPUR. 

Notes.— The  building  Li  sixty  feet  by  forty.  The  floor  and  platform  in  front  are 
elevated  from  the  ground  three  feet.  Total  elevation'of  the  ioof,  twenty-seven 
feet.    Total  elevation  of  the  spire,  ninety-five  feet. 

There  are  twelve  windows,  four  feet  wide,  eight  feet  high.  One  large  entrance- 
door,  five  feet  by  nine.  Two  doors  entering  the  library  and  sexton's  rooms.  The 
body  of  the  church  is  seated  with  arm-chairs.  Along  the  side-walls  there  is  a 
raised  seat.  The  aisles  are  round  the  sides.  The  whole  is  covered  with  beautiful 
carpet.     Punkhas,  or  large  fans,  swing  over  the  chairs. 

The  building  is  of  the  Roman  Doric  order,  with  all  the  modern  improvements.  A 
foot  and  a-half  above  the  tops  of  the  windows  there  are  handsome  cornices  pro- 
jecting far  out;  and  around  the  windows  and  doors, both  inside  and  out,  are  beau- 
tiful mouldings.  The  four  pillars  in  the  body  of  the  church,  supporting  the  ar- 
chitrave and  roof,  are  twenty-one  feet  high,  and  two  and  a-half  feet  diameter  at 
the  base.  They,  together  with  the  pulpit,  and  the  arch  behind  the  pulpit,  and  the 
grand  arch  between  the  vestibule  and  the  church,  are  beautifully  done  in  stucco, 
so  that  they  appear  like  pure  white  marble.  The  cushion  is  crimson  silk-velvet 
with  tassels.  The  lamps,  such  an  ornament,  together  with  the  wall-lamps  and 
bell,  are  the  gift  of  an  American  friend.  'With  this  exception,  all  the  other  ex- 
penses, $2,250,  were  provided  for  by  our  kind  friends  in  this  country. 

There  is  a  contrivance,  which  I  have  never  before  seen,  for  conveying  the  water  off 
the  roof  silently  to  the  ground,  by  means  of  six  drains  on  the  two  sides,  (as  seen  in 
the  plan,)  which  pass  down  to  the  ground  through  the  centre  of  the  pilasters.  We 
could  not  obtain  tin  spouts  here.  The  plan  answers  admirably.  The  lightning-rod 
of  iron,  sheeted  with  copper,  passes  through  the  gilded  ball  and  centre  of  the  spire 
for  about  ten  feet.  It  then  goes  out  to  the  west,  and  is  conveyed  the  whole  way 
from  the  ball  to  the  ground  through  necks  of  bottles  placed  in  wood,  and  then 
passes  into  a  well  at  the  foundation. 

In  the  reading-room  there  is  a  large  bookcase,  with  glazed  doors,  that  holds 
the  best  part  of  the  mission  library.  Here  the  missionaries  hold  their  meetings  for 
public  business.  It  answers  also  as  a  private  study.  In  the  sexton's  room  there  are 
stairs  winding  around  three  sides  and  leading  to  the  roof,  and  under  these  stairs  there 
are  presses  for  oil  and  lamps,  &c.  The  vestibule,  and  the  aisles  between  the  pillars 
and  the  walls,  are  covered  with  cloth  of  colours,  cut  in  diamonds  to  imitate  a  mar- 
ble pavement,  and  look  well.  All  the  windows  have  Venetian  shutters  outside, 
painted  green.  The  house  would  seat  four  to  five  hundred  natives.  Arrangements 
have  been  made  to  put  up  a  gallery  without  trouble,  should  it  ever  be  required. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 


PAGE 


Analogy  between  Israel's  rebellion  on  the  borders  of  the  pro- 
mised land,  and  the  action  of  the  Christian  church  in  re- 
gard to  missions — The  results  of  unbelief  and  disobedience 
— The  commission  given  to  both  similar — The  apostles  and 
others  obeyed — Their  success  wonderful — Missionary  enter- 
prise ceased  during  the  dark  ages — Revived  during  the  last 
fifty  years — Heathendom  spied  out  by  modern  missionaries 
— Interesting  reports  given  to  the  chm-ches — Missionary 
labours  attended  with  reasonable  success — The  field  wide 
open — A  call  to  go  up  and  occupy — The  gospel  bequeathed 
to  all — The  church  the  executors  of  Christ's  last  will  and 
testament — Importance  of  the  trust — Obedience  to  Christ's 
last  command  as  important  as  to  his  dying  command — 
Christians  who  obey  not  the  former  inconsistent — Little 
sympathy  with  Christ  and  the  perishing  heathen — The  love 
of  Christ  ought  to  constrain  us — Outline  of  the  work 13 

CHAPTER  II. 

India  as  a  field  of  missions  fully  open— Harmony  and  zeal  of 
missionaries — Their  location—Supply  of  labourers  inade- 
quate— Variety  of  tribes  and  nations  occupying  the  country 
— Hindu  sects — Appearance  of  India — A  missionary's  im- 
pressions on  reaching  its  benighted  shores — Bodies  of  the 
dead  floating  in  the  Ganges — Burning  the  dead — Scenery 
in  Bengal  and  Northern  India— Valley  of  the  Ganges — 
Population  immense — Himalaya  mountains — Sanatariums 
— Climate  of  the  plains— Hot  winds— Fertility  of  the  soil — 
Modes  of  Agriculture— Rainy  season — British  government 
in  India — Former  connection  with  idolatry — Christianity 
excluded  from  government  colleges  and  schools — A  call  on 
Christians  to  spread  the  gospel 


29 


10  CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  III. 

PAGE 

Character  of  the  Hindus— Their  appearance  and  dress— Moral 
condition— Degradation  of  the  female  sex— Early  marriages 
—Confinement  in  Zenanas— Widowhood— Drudgery  of  the 
poor  for  a  scanty  subsistence — Taste  in  dress — Society  anti- 
social—Patriarchal system  in  families— Marriage  ceremo- 
nies— Population  collected  into  cities  and  villages — Con- 
struction of  dwellings — Want  of  taste  and  comfort  in  their 
apartments — Food — Mode  of  eating  and  drinking — Confi- 
dence in  charms — Medical  practice — Holidays  numerous — 
The  Holi  and  Durgapuja — Horrors  of  the  swinging  festival 
— Goddess  Kali — Scenes  at  a  temple  of  Jagatnath — Mela  at 
Hardwar — Pilgrimages — Our  duty  to  the  heathen 53 

CHAPTER  IV. 
The  Hindu  religion  a  transcendentalism — Four  sreat  Shasters 
— Character  of  these  writings — No  claim  to  inspiration — 
Absurdities  taught— Notions  of  the  Supreme  Being— No 
worship  rendered  to  him — Three  great  gods — Subordinate 
deities  innumerable — False  opinions  regarding  the  solar  sys- 
tem— Origin  of  caste — Transmigration  of  souls — Doctrine 
of  fate — Final  absorption  of  all  things  in  Brahm — Incanta- 
tions— Hindu  worship — Trifling  ceremonies — Bathings — 
Temples — Numerous  and  opposing  sects — Austerities  and 
tortures — Horrid  opinions  and  practices  of  the  Thugs — De- 
gradation of  mendicants  indescribable 75 

CHAPTER  V. 

Discouragements  to  missionary  labour — Difficulties  should  be 
known  by  the  church — Number  of  strange  languages  spoken 
— Difficult  of  acquisition — A  Christian  and  scientific  litera- 
ture to  be  created — Progress  made  in  translations — Much 
still  to  be  done — Ignorance  and  prejudice  of  the  people — 
Printing  but  little  known — Native  books — Paucity  of 
readers — Opposition  of  the  priests  to  Christian  education — 
Bigotry  —  Self-righteousness  —  Caste  —  Brahminical  influ- 
ence— Female  degradation — Moral  depravity  of  the  com- 
munity— Idolatry  and  heathen  rites — Grounds  of  encou- 
ragement   104 


CONTENTS.  11 


CHAPTER  VI. 

PAQB 

Organization  and  efforts  of  the  first  mission  to  the  heathen — 
Travels  of  Paul  and  Barnabas,  and  their  success — Report 
made  to  the  church  at  Antioch — Inferences  from  this 
Scriptural  example — Progress  and  prospects  of  the  gospel 
in  North  India — Particular  account  of  missionary  opera- 
tions at  Fathagarh — Furruckabad — Kanpur — Allahabad — 
Mirzapur  —  Chunar  —  Banaras —  Ghazepur —  Patna —  Mon- 
ghyr — Berhiimpur — Culna —  Chinsurah — Ser&mpur — Cal- 
cutta— London  mission  schools — Schools  of  the  Free  Church 
of  Scotland — Education  in  the  metropolis — Past  success — 
Cheering  prospects — Character  of  the  missionaries — Results 
of  their  labours 138 


CHAPTER  VII. 

Brief  account  of  the  Lodiana  mission  in  the  north-west  pro- 
vinces of  India — First  missionaries  sent  out — Lodiana  se- 
lected as  a  station — Reinforcement  of  missionaries — New 
stations  commenced — Additional  reinforcements — Stations 
now  occupied — Instrumentalities  employed  to  evangelize 
the  heathen — Preaching  the  gospel — Bazaar  preaching, 
how  conducted — Regular  services  on  the  Sabbath — Itinera- 
tions through  distant  districts — Strange  mode  of  travel- 
ling— Distribution  of  Scriptures  and  tracts — Attendance  at 
religious  fairs — Annual  mela  at  Hardwar — Interesting  la- 
bours at  that  celebrated  place  of  pilgrimage — Schools — ■ 
English  and  vernacular — Male  and  female  boarding-schools 
— Happy  results — The  press — Its  operations  extensive — 
Works  translated,  published,  and  distributed  —  Native 
churches  formed — Presbyteries  organized — The  mission- 
ary enterprise  no  romance — How  to  be  undertaken  and 
conducted — Causes  of  thanksgiving  and  of  encouragement 
— A  great  preparatory  work  accomplished — The  enterprise 
of  new  settlers  in  America  compared  with  that  of  Chris- 
tian missionaries — Want  of  immediate  success  no  cause 
of  discouragement — The  gospel  destined  to  triumph  over 
all  opposition  and  to  subdue  the  world  to  Christ 1G0 


12 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


paob 


Duties  and  responsibilities  of  Christians  to  the  heathen — 
All  Hindfistan  open  to  the  gospel — A  loud  call  of  Provi- 
dence in  behalf  of  her  perishing  millions — No  good  reason 
for  delay — The  church  now  called  upon  to  display  her  mili- 
tant and  aggressive  character— A  good  beginning  made — 
Advantages  not  to  be  lost  without  increased  guilt — Chris- 
tian neglect  exposed— The  physical,  mental,  and  moral  de- 
gradation of  the  Hindus  an  argument  in  their  behalf— Their 
destiny  as  heathen— Their  blood  laid  to  the  account  of 
an  unfaithful  church — The  gospel  a  remedy  for  their  case 

— The  last  command  binding  on  all,  yet  obeyed  by  few 

No  lack  of  enterprise  in  worldly  affairs— Duty  to  the  heathen 
misunderstood— Not  to  be  converted  by  miracles,  but  by 
means  of  divine  appointment — Apostolic  example  worthy  of 
imitation — Our  obligations  and  advantages  greater  than 
those  of  the  primitive  Christians— Sketch  of  Paul's  mission- 
ary labours— Entire  consecration  required  of  all— The  mis- 
sionary spirit  essentially  the  spirit  of  the  gospel — The 
Apostle  John's  views  of  the  case— Selfishness  incompatible 
with  Christianity— Neglect  of  the  heathen  inconsistent  with 
humanity,  justice,  honesty,  faithfulness,  and  gratitude- 
Love  to  Christ  surmounts  difficulties — Signs  of  promise 

Success  fully  proportioned  to  efforts  made— The  work  in 

its  infancy— Christians  only  awaking  to  a  sense  of  duty 

Sketch  of  what  has  been  accomplished— Results  incalcu- 
lable—Closing address  to  youth,  to  students  of  theology, 
and  to  the  church  at  large 190 


MISSIONS  IN  HINDUSTAN. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Analogy  between  Israel's  rebellion  on  the  borders  of  the  promised 
land,  and  the  action  of  the  Church  in  regard  to  missions — The 
results  of  unbelief  and  disobedience — The  commission  given  to 
both  similar — The  Apostles  and  others  obeyed— Their  success 
•wonderful — Missionary  enterprise  ceased  during  the  dark  ages 
— Revived  during  the  last  fifty  years — Heathendom  spied  out  by 
modern  missionaries — Interesting  reports  given  to  the  Churche3 
— Missionary  labours  attended  -with  reasonable  success — The 
field  wide  open — A  call  to  go  up  and  occupy — The  gospel  be- 
queathed to  all — The  Church  the  executors  of  Christ's  last  will 
and  testament — Importance  of  the  trust — Obedience  to  Christ's 
last  command  as  important  as  to  his  dying  command — Christians 
who  obey  not  the  former  inconsistent — Little  sympathy  with 
Christ  and  the  perishing  heathen — The  love  of  Christ  ought  to 
constrain  us — Outline  of  the  work. 

The  history  of  the  Children  of  Israel,  in  their  de- 
liverance from  the  house  of  bondage  in  Egypt,  in  their 
passage  through  the  Red  Sea  and  the  Wilderness,  and 
their  final  introduction  into  the  land  of  promise,  bears 
a  very  strong  analogy,  to  the  history  of  individual 
Christians,  brought  from  the  bondage  of  a  broken  co- 
venant— from  the  slavery  of  sin  and  Satan,  into  the 
liberty  wherewith  Christ  makes  his  people  free, — 
guided  by  the  special  and  gracious  providences  of  God 
while  passing  through  the  wilderness  of  this  world, 

and  at  last  made  conquerors  over  all  their  spiritual 

2  13 


14  MISSIONS    IN    HINDUSTAN. 


enemies,  and  admitted  to  the  full  enjoyment  of  the 
heavenly  Canaan.  It  also  bears  a  striking  analogy 
to  the  history  of  the  Church  in  all  her  progressive 
movements,  and  all  her  glorious  conquests  under  the 
direction  of  Jesus,  the  true  Joshua — the  captain  of 
the  Lord's  host;  in  whose  hands,  as  Mediator,  and  as 
her  exalted  King  and  Head,  has  been  placed  all  power 
in  heaven  and  earth,  for  the  promotion  of  her  interests 
and  the  extension  of  her  boundaries.  It  has  appeared 
to  the  writer,  also,  that  this  resemblance  is  peculiarly 
impressive  in  that  part  of  the  history  of  the  Church  in 
the  Wilderness,  which  is  recorded  in  the  thirteenth 
and  fourteenth  chapters  of  the  book  of  Numbers. 
"And  the  Lord  spake  unto  Moses,  saying,  Send  thou 
men,  that  they  may  search  the  land  of  Canaan,  which 
I  give  unto  the  children  of  Israel :  of  every  tribe  of 
your  fathers  shall  ye  send  a  man,  every  one  a  ruler 
among  them.  And  Moses  sent  men  to  spy  out  the 
land  of  Canaan,  and  said  unto  them,  Get  you  up  this 
way  southward,  and  go  up  into  the  mountain,  and  see 
the  land,  what  it  is;  and  the  people  that  dwelleth 
therein,  whether  they  be  strong  or  weak,  few  or  many : 
and  what  the  land  is  that  they  dwell  in,  whether  it  be 
good  or  bad ;  and  what  cities  they  be  that  they  dwell 
in,  whether  in  tents  or  in  strongholds ;  and  what  the 
land  is,  whether  it  be  fat  or  lean,  whether  there  bo 
wood  therein  or  not :  and  be  ye  of  good  courage,  and 
bring  of  the  fruit  of  the  land.  So  they  went  and 
searched  the  land,  from  the  wilderness  of  Zin  unto 
Rehob,  as  men  come  to  Hamath.  And  they  returned 
from  searching  the  land,  after  forty  days,  and  came 
to  Moses  and  Aaron,  and  unto  all  the  congregation  of 


ISRAEL   AND   THE    CHURCH.  15 


the  children  of  Israel,  and  brought  back  word,  and 
showed  thern  the  fruit  of  the  land ;  and  said,  we  came 
unto  the  land  whither  thou  sentest  us,  and  surely  it 
floweth  with  milk  and  honey ;  and  this  is  the  fruit  of 
it.  Nevertheless  the  people  be  strong  that  dwell  in 
the  land,  and  the  cities  are  walled  and  very  great :  and 
moreover,  we  saw  the  children  of  Anak  there.  The 
Amalekites  dwell  in  the  land  of  the  south ;  and  the 
Hittites  and  the  Jebusites  and  the  Amorites  dwell  in 
the  mountains ;  and  the  Canaanites  dwell  by  the  sea, 
and  by  the  coast  of  Jordan."  On  hearing  this  much 
of  the  report,  murmuring  and  dissatisfaction  spread 
throughout  the  camp.  Then  "  Caleb  stilled  the  people 
before  Moses,  and  said,  Let  us  go  up  at  once  and  pos- 
sess it ;  for  we  are  avcII  able  to  overcome  it.  But  the 
men  that  went  up  with  him  said,  we  be  not  able  to  go 
up  against  the  people,  for  they  are  stronger  than  we. 
And  they  brought  up  an  evil  report  of  the  land  which 
they  had  searched  unto  the  children  of  Israel,  saying, 
the  land,  through  which  we  have  gone  to  search  it, 
is  a  land  that  eateth  up  the  inhabitants  thereof;  and 
all  the  people  that  we  saw  in  it,  are  men  of  a  great 
stature :  and  there  we  saw  the  giants,  the  sons  of 
Anak,  which  come  of  the  giants ;  and  we  were  in 
our  own  sight  as  grasshoppers,  and  so  we  were  in 
their  sight.  And  all  the  congregation  lifted  up 
their  voice  and  cried ;  and  the  people  wept  that  night, 
and  they  murmured  against  Moses  and  against  Aaron, 
and  said  unto  them,  Would  God  that  we  had  died 
in  the  land  of  Egypt!  or  would  God  we  had  died 
in  this  wilderness!  And  wherefore  hath  the  Lord 
brought  us  unto  this  land,  to  fall  by  the  sword,  that 


16  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


our  wives  and  our  children  should  be  a  prey?  "Were 
it  not  better  for  us  to  return  into  Egypt  ?  And  they 
they  said  one  to  another,  Let  us  make  a  captain,  and 
let  us  return  into  Egypt.  Then  Moses  and  Aaron  fell 
on  their  faces  before  all  the  assembly  of  the  congrega- 
tion of  the  children  of  Israel.  And  Joshua  the  son 
of  Nun,  and  Caleb  the  son  of  Jephunneh,  which  were 
of  them  that  searched  the  land,  rent  their  clothes : 
and  they  spake  unto  all  the  company  of  the  children 
of  Israel,  saying,  the  land  which  we  passed  through 
to  search  it,  is  an  exceeding  good  land.  If  the  Lord 
delight  in  us,  then  he  will  bring  us  into  this  land,  and 
give  it  us ;  a  land  which  floweth  with  milk  and  honey. 
Only  rebel  not  ye  against  the  Lord,  neither  fear  ye  the 
people  of  the  land,  for  they  are  bread  for  us :  their 
defence  is  departed  from  them,  and  the  Lord  is  with 
us:  fear  them  not." 

With  the  previous  and  subsequent  history  of  this 
peculiar  people,  Christians  are  well  acquainted.  In 
fulfilment  of  the  covenant  made  with  Abraham,  re- 
newed to  Isaac  and  Jacob,  and  confirmed  to  Israel  for 
an  everlasting  covenant,  in  which  it  was  said,  "Unto 
thee  will  I  give  the  land  of  Canaan,  as  the  lot  of  your 
inheritance,"  God  had  preserved  his  chosen  people  in 
times  of  famine;  wrought  miracles  for  their  deliver- 
ance ;  reproved  kings  for  their  sakes ;  with  a  high  hand 
and  an  outstretched  arm,  brought  them  out  of  the  house 
of  bondage ;  made  a  way  through  the  Red  Sea,  for  his 
ransomed  to  pass  over  as  on  dry  ground,  and  which  the 
Egyptians  assaying  to  do  were  drowned;  manifested 
his  presence  in  a  pillar  of  cloud  to  defend  them  from 
the  heat  by  day,  and  a  pillar  of  fire  to  give  them  light 


UNBELIEF    AND    DISOBEDIENCE.  17 


by  night ;  gave  them  bread  from  heaven,  and  water 
from  the  flinty  rock;  and  guided  them  on  safely 
through  the  wilderness  until  they  came  to  the  very 
borders  of  that  good  land  which  the  Lord  their  God 
had  given  them.  As  a  precautionary  measure,  and  as 
preparatory  to  a  general  move  of  the  congregation, 
chosen  men  from  their  respective  tribes  were  sent,  by 
the  command  of  God,  to  spy  out  the  land.  Their  re- 
port is  recorded  above.  Two  of  them,  were  men  of 
faith,  and  confiding  in  the  promise  and  power  of  Je- 
hovah, they  encouraged  the  people  to  go  up  at  once  and 
take  possession  of  those  heathen  nations,  whose  defence 
had  departed  from  them,  and  whose  hearts  were  failing 
them  for  fear  of  a  people  whose  God  was  the  Lord. 
A  large  majority  of  ten,  however,  brought  up  a  very 
different  report.  They  had  no  confidence  in  that  Al- 
mighty arm  that  was  engaged  in  their  behalf.  They 
represented  it  as  "a  land  that  eateth  up  the  inhabit- 
ants thereof."  As  a  country  filled  with  great  and 
walled  cities,  defended  by  men  of  a  great  stature ;  by 
giants  of  the  sons  of  Anak,  in  whose  sight,  as  well  as 
in  their  own,  they  appeared  as  grasshoppers.  This 
intelligence  afforded  a  sufficient  excuse  to  the  faint- 

C5 

hearted,  and  produced  the  utmost  consternation  and 
disaffection  in  the  camp  of  Israel.  The  whole  body 
of  the  people  rose  up  against  Moses  and  Aaron;  ex- 
pressed deep  regret  that  they  had  ever  left  the  flesh- 
pots  of  Egypt,  and  resolved  to  appoint  a  leader  to 
guide  them  back  again  to  the  house  of  bondage.  This 
was  nothing  less  than  an  open  rebellion  against  God, 
who  was  himself  king  in  Jeshurun,  and  who,  as  he  had 
promised,  was  able  to  perforin  all  that  was  necessary 

2* 


18  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


to  place  theni  in  the  land  given  in  covenant  to  their 
fathers.  As  a  punishment  for  their  unbelief  and  dis- 
obedience to  the  Divine  authority,  they  were  remanded 
back  to  the  borders  of  the  Red  Sea,  and,  for  nearly 
forty  years,  caused  to  wander  in  the  desert,  until  the 
carcasses  of  all  who  at  that  time  were  twenty  years 
old  and  upward,  fell  in  the  wilderness,  save  Caleb, 
the  son  of  Jephunneh,  and  Joshua,  the  son  of  Nun. 
Thus  we  see  that  God  chastised  them  for  rebellion,  and 
that  they  could  not  enter  in  and  realize  the  fulfilment 
of  his  promise  because  of  unbelief. 

Now,  there  are  two  periods  of  the  Church,  in  New 
Testament  times,  to  which  this  interesting  portion  of 
scripture  history  appears  to  bear  a  striking  analogy : 
One  at  the  commencement  of  the  Christian  era ;  the 
other,  the  important  age  in  which  it  is  our  privilege  to 
live  and  act.  After  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  had  ap- 
peared to  put  away  sin  by  the  sacrifice  of  himself, 
after  he  had  fulfilled  all  righteousness,  and  by  one 
offering  up  of  himself  had  for  ever  perfected  them 
who  are  sanctified;  after  the  object  for  which  he  came 
into  our  world  was  accomplished,  and,  as  the  reward 
of  his  humiliation  and  suffering,  all  power  in  heaven 
and  earth  had  been  put  into  his  hands,  for  the  exten- 
sion of  his  kingdom ;  and  after  the  wall  of  partition 
that  had  so  long  separated  the  Jews  from  the  Gentile 
nations  had  been  thrown  down ;  then,  as  he  was  about 
to  ascend  to  the  throne  of  his  mediatorial  glory,  he 
gave  the  solemn  command  to  his  disciples,  "Go  ye 
into  all  the  world,  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every 
creature ;  and  lo !  I  am  with  you  alway,  even  unto  the 
end  of  the  world."     Here  then  is  a  command  given, 


THE    SAVIOUR'S    COMMISSION.  19 


in  reference  to  the  evangelization  of  the  heathen,  and 
the  introduction  of  Christ's  kingdom  into  the  corrupt 
and  idolatrous  nations  of  the  earth,  which  is  just  as 
important  and  imperative  as  that  which  was  given  to 
the  Church  in  the  wilderness.  It  was  evidently  so 
understood  by  Apostolic  men  and  primitive  Christians. 
Possessing  the  spirit  of  Caleb  and  Joshua,  they  went 
forth  to  the  arduous  work  of  subduing  the  gentile  world 
to  the  obedience  of  the  faith.  God  gave  testimony  to 
the  word  of  his  grace,  and  soon  the  gospel  numbered 
its  trophies  in  every  part  of  the  civilized  world.  This 
was  a  good  beginning,  and  had  succeeding  generations 
prosecuted  the  enterprise  in  the  same  spirit,  they  would 
have  gone  on  conquering  and  to  conquer,  until  every 
remnant  of  idolatry  would  have  been  removed,  and 
the  kingdoms  of  this  world  have  become,  in  actual 
subjection,  the  kingdoms  of  our  Lord  and  of  his  Christ. 
But  they  soon  grew  weary  of  this  work  of  faith  and 
labour  of  love.  No  longer  willing  to  encounter  the 
difficulties  of  missionary  life,  and  to  endure  the  sacri- 
fices and  self-denial,  the  perils  and  the  pains,  of  the 
Apostle  to  the  gentiles,  they  furled  the  gospel  banner, 
destined  to  wave  over  every  nation  under  heaven, 
and  on  which  those  devoted  men,  those  true  soldiers 
of  the  cross,  had  inscribed  in  living  characters,  "  Give 
us  victory,  or  give  us  deatii."  They  preferred 
the  gratification  of  the  flesh,  and  the  indulgence  of 
inglorious  ease,  to  the  toil  of  the  battle  field,  and  the 
crown  of  the  victor.  Like  the  unbelieving  and  un- 
grateful Israelites,  their  hearts  were  not  right  with 
God,  neither  were  they  steadfast  in  his  Covenant. 
During  many  centuries,  in  the  dark  ages,  the  work  of 


20  MISSIONS    IN    HINDUSTAN. 


evangelizing  the  heathen  was  at  a  stand,  and  it  was 
not  until  the  reformation  of  the  Church  from  popery 
was  effected ;  it  was  not  until  she  began  to  assume  her 
primitive  character ;  to  manifest  the  vital  influence  of 
her  Divine  Head,  and  to  imitate  his  benevolent  and 
self-denying  example,  that  the  glorious  work  of  mis- 
sions was  resumed.  The  same  cause  that  kept  the 
Church  in  the  wilderness  for  forty  years,  and  allowed 
the  heathen  to  remain  in  the  undisturbed  possession 
of  the  land  of  promise,  has  retarded  the  progress  of 
Christianity  and  the  overthrow  of  the  powers  of  dark- 
ness. That  cause  is  unbelief,  and  disobedience  to  an 
express  command,  and  the  consequent  displeasure  of 
the  King  of  Zion. 

But  the  period  for  the  actual  fulfilment  of  the  pro- 
mise at  length  draws  near,  and  we  rejoice  that  the 
Church  of  Christ  again  occupies  the  position  she  did 
in  the  wilderness  of  Paran.  May  she  not  imitate  the 
example  of  the  rebellious  Israelites !  For  some  time 
she  has  been  sending  men  to  the  heathen  nations,  to 
spy  out  the  land.  The  reports  that  have  been  made, 
inform  the  Church  that  great  and  powerful  obstacles 
are  in  the  way  of  the  gospel.  They  do  not  conceal 
the  fact,  that  gigantic  establishments  of  idolatry,  gray 
with  age,  and  supported  by  a  blind  superstition,  exist, 
and  that  it  will  require  strong,  united,  and  persevering 
efforts  on  the  part  of  God's  people,  to  obtain  a  footing 
and  finally  to  subdue  those  nations  to  the  sceptre  of 
Messiah,  the  Prince.  In  view,  however,  of  all  these 
difficulties  and  discouragements,  and  of  the  promises 
and  power  of  Jehovah  engaged  to  render  the  means 
of  his  own  appointment  successful,  they  furnish  suffi- 


THE    CALL   TO    OCCUPY.  21 


cient  ground  to  believe  that,  in  the  proper  use  of  these 
means,  the  victory  is  certain.  In  many  instances,  the 
power  which  the  heathen  once  possessed  has  departed 
from  them.  The  light  of  science,  as  well  as  of  the 
gospel,  has  already,  to  some  extent,  penetrated  the 
thick  darkness  by  which  heathendom  has  been  so  long 
enveloped.  God  has  blessed  the  incipient  efforts  of 
his  servants  in  foreign  lands,  and  some  fruits,  like  the 
grapes  of  Eschol,  have  been  presented  as  the  earnest 
of  a  more  plentiful  harvest.  In  short,  the  united 
advice  to  the  churches,  of  all  the  faithful  men  who 
have  gone  to  spy  out  the  land,  is,  "Let  us  go  up  at 
once  and  possess  it,  for  we  are  well  able  to  overcome 
it. 

Let  us  now,  Christian  friends,  look  seriously  and  so- 
lemnly at  this  subject;  and,  in  full  view  of  its  vast 
importance,  in  view  of  the  past  rebellion  of  the 
Church,  and  its  awful  consequences  to  herself,  and  in 
the  destinies  of  a  perishing  world;  in  view  of  her  so- 
lemn obligations  to  Him  who  by  a  mission  to  our  guilty 
world,  redeemed  her,  not  with  corruptible  things,  such  . 
as  silver  and  gold,  but  with  his  own  precious  blood, 
say,  can  she  hesitate — can  she  linger,  in  discharging 
her  duty  to  the  heathen?  And  if  the  Church  will  not 
go  forward  promptly  and  efficiently  in  this  glorious 
enterprise,  is  it  not  the  duty  of  every  individual 
Christian  to  resolve  to  do  the  part  that  belongs  to  him- 
self, and  to  say,  in  the  language  of  Joshua,  on  another 
occasion,  "As  for  me  and  my  house,  we  will  serve  the 
Lord?"  Is  it  not  the  duty  of  the  whole  Church,  to 
rise  up  at  once,  and  by  grand,  decisive  efforts,  worthy 
of  herself,  redeem  the  missionary  character  she  has  so 


I  : 
I  i 
I  i 


22  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


long  lost?  Is  it  indeed  possible  that,  when  brought 
to  the  very  borders  of  the  promised  land;  when  Pro- 
vidence, in  answer  to  her  prayers,  has  so  widely  opened 
the  doors  of  access  to  so  many  parts  of  the  heathen 
world ;  when  the  wants  and  the  woes  of  so  many  mil- 
lions of  perishing  heathen  are  loudly  calling  upon  us 
for  that  help  which  we  have  it  in  our  power  to  render ; 
and  when,  in  the  Bible,  we  have  the  express  command 
of  the  Saviour  to  "go  forward,"  "to  go  and  teach  all 
nations,"  is  it  at  all  possible,  that  any  one  who  pro- 
fesses the  name  of  Christ,  will  manifest  so  little  of  his 
spirit,  so  little  of  the  feelings  of  humanity,  as  to  re- 
fuse to  go  with  a  gracious  message  to  the  heathen ;  or 
if  he  cannot  go,  to  send  and  support  a  substitute  to 
perform  the  important  service.  Surely  that  man  who 
continues  to  hold  a  firm  grasp  of  the  wealth  which  God 
has  given  him  to  be  employed  in  promoting  his  kingdom 
and  glory,  or  expends  it  in  the  gratification  of  pride 
or  person,  and  recognizes  not  the  claims  of  benevolence, 
cannot  much  longer  be  regarded  as  a  good  member  of 
the  Christian  Church,  whatever  may  be  his  professions. 
He  certainly  is  not  a  faithful  steward  of  the  talents 
God  has  committed  to  his  care,  or  of  the  treasures  of 
the  gospel,  sufficient  to  enrich  the  world.  We  main- 
tain that  in  the  last  Will  and  Testament  of  the  Saviour, 
he  bequeathed  the  gospel  to  the  world,  to  the  whole 
tvorld.  In  the  dispensation  of  the  covenant  of  grace, 
by  a  free  gift  and  grant,  its  blessings  are  made  over 
to  sinners  of  every  clime  and  colour;  and  hence  the 
command  to  "go  into  all  the  world,  and  preach  the 
gospel  to  every  creature."  For  the  administration  of 
this  testament,  Christ  has  constituted  his  disciples  the 


THE   GOSPEL    BEQUEATHED   TO   ALL.  23 


executors,  and,  of  course,  it  is  their  duty  faithfully  to 
see  that  all  the  legatees  be  duly  informed  of  the  be- 
nefits that  have  been  bequeathed,  and  the  way  in  which 
they  may  be  possessed.  A  neglect  or  failure  in  these 
duties  must  necessarily  implicate  the  honesty  and  faith- 
fulness of  those  selected  to  discharge  such  an  important 
trust.  Nay,  it  is  not  only  a  breach  of  trust,  but  a 
lamentable  evidence  of  selfishness,  and  of  ingratitude 
to  Him  who,  in  the  riches  of  his  grace,  has  allowed 
them  to  share  in  the  benefit ;  a  benefit  that  is  not  di- 
minished by  distribution,  but  one  "which  enriches  him 
that  gives,  and  him  that  takes."  Let  us  just  ask  our- 
selves what  judgment  we  would  form  of  individuals 
who  had  been  appointed  to  act  as  executors  of  a 
large  estate,  in  the  benefits  of  which  they  themselves 
had  largely  shared,  if,  regardless  of  the  important 
trust,  they  should  consider  it  sufficient  to  secure  their 
own  portion,  or  to  make  over  to  their  immediate  friends 
and  countrymen  the  share  which  belonged  to  them, 
while  no  efforts  whatever  were  made  to  send  the  in- 
formation, or  transfer  the  legacies  bequeathed  to 
friends  in  other  lands  ?  Would  we  consider  such  per- 
sons to  be  men  of  honour  and  of  faithfulness  ?  Could 
we  in  truth  call  them  just  and  honest  men?  What 
would  the  world  say  of  them  ?  What  opinion  should 
the  Church  give  of  them  ?  Dear  brethren,  we  speak 
freely,  and  with  shame  Avould  confess,  that  we  arc  all, 
verily,  guilty  in  this  matter.  If  those,  also,  who  have 
been  most  benevolent  and  zealous  in  the  discharge  of 
their  obligations,  must  acknowledge  their  shortcomings, 
what  can  be  said  of  those  who  have  done  nothing  to 
advance  the  Saviour's  kingdom?     They  sinfully  with- 


24  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


hold  from  the  ignorant  and  perishing  heathen  the 
knowledge  of  a  Saviour's  love,  and  of  the  unsearchable 
riches  of  Christ;  and  will  not  the  blood  of  the  heathen 
be  required  at  the  hands  of  those  who  allow  them  to 
perish  through  neglect  ?  This  view  of  the  missionary- 
work  invests  it  with  an  immense  importance,  and  rolls 
over  on  every  Christian  man  and  woman  and  youth 
an  awful  responsibility.  Strange,  that  a  command  so 
plain,  and  a  work  so  glorious,  so  honourable,  and  im- 
portant, as  that  of  giving  the  gospel  to  our  fellow-men, 
should  be  so  long  and  so  generally  neglected ! 

We  have  often  wondered  why  it  is  that  the  Christian 
world  has  heretofore  paid  so  little  regard  to  the  last 
command  of  the  Saviour,  "to  preach  the  gospel  to 
every  creature,"  while  it  is  no  less  important  and 
binding  on  every  follower  of  Christ,  than  that  other 
commandment  which  says,  "  Do  this  in  remembrance 
of  me."  We  all  know  what  would  be  thought  of  an 
individual,  who  claimed  membership  in  the  Christian 
Church,  and  yet  from  year  to  year  should  refuse  to 
comply  with  the  dying  command  of  Christ  at  his  table. 
The  name  of  such  a  person  would  soon  be  stricken  off 
the  roll  of  church  membership.  And  yet,  strange  to 
say,  multitudes  in  the  Church,  at  the  present  time,  are 
still  recognised  as  members,  in  good  and  regular 
standing,  who  have  never,  in  their  whole  lives,  done 
any  thing  whatever  toward  a  practical  obedience  of 
that  last  command — who  have  never,  it  may  be,  con- 
tributed a  single  dollar  toward  sending  the  means  of 
grace  and  salvation  to  a  lost  world !  What  strange 
inconsistency  !  What  poor  evidence  do  such  give  of 
their  love  to  Christ  and  the  souls  of  their  fellow-men ! 


INCONSISTENCY   OP   CHKISTIANS.  25 


How  unlike  in  their  spirit  and  disposition  to  primitive 
Christians !  While  we  would  not,  in  all  cases,  call  in 
question  the  piety  of  such  persons,  as  much  of  this 
apathy  may  he  ascribed  to  education  and  example,  and 
the  fact  that,  in  the  Church  at  large,  the  one  duty  has 
been  made  prominent,  while  the  other  has  hardly  ever 
been  pressed  upon  the  conscience,  yet  we  think  the 
time  has  come  when  the  whole  truth  and  their  duty 
should  be  plainly  told,  however  unwelcome  or  startling 
it  may  be.  Certainly,  so  far  as  this  subject  is  con- 
cerned, their  example  furnishes  but  little  proof  of  sym- 
pathy with  the  suffering  Saviour,  or  of  that  love  to 
their  brethren  of  the  human  family  which  is  a  test 
of  true  religion.  The  gospel  requires  us  to  love  our 
neighbour  as  ourselves.  The  heathen  are  our  neigh- 
bours and  our  brethren.  The  apostle  informs  us,  that 
he  who  loveth  not  his  brother  whom  he  hath  seen, 
cannot  love  God  whom  he  hath  not  seen.  Again  he 
says,  "  Hereby  perceive  we  the  love  of  God,  because 
he  laid  down  his  life  for  us :  and  we  ought  to  lay  down 
our  lives  for  the  brethren.  But  whoso  hath  this  world's 
good,  and  seeth  his  brother  have  need,  (and  who  are  in 
such  need  as  the  heathen,  perishing  for  the  bread  of 
life?)  and  shutteth  up  his  bowels  of  compassion  from 
him,  how  dwelleth  the  love  of  God  in  him?"  Thus 
the  pen  of  inspiration,  in  the  most  forcible  manner, 
has  clearly  decided  that  philanthropy  is  an  important 
and  essential  part  of  Christianity ;  and  that  whatever 
men  may  think  of  themselves,  whatever  pretensions 
they  may  make,  if  they  feel  no  obligations  to  relieve 
the  moral  maladies  of  their  perishing  fellow-men,  and 
do  nothing  to  send  them  the  gospel,  the  appointed  in- 

3 


26  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


strumentality  of  salvation,  they  give  no  evidence  of 
the  love  of  God  abiding  in  them.  If  we  know  any 
thing  of  the  spirit  of  true  religion,  and  of  its  Divine 
author,  it  is  a  spirit  of  love  to  the  miserable ;  a  spirit 
of  pure  benevolence ;  a  spirit  of  missions.  We  think 
that  no  sincere  and  enlightened  Christian  can  remain 
inactive  in  the  present  day,  or  regardless  of  the  wants 
of  perishing  humanity.  The  love  of  Christ  will  con- 
strain him  to  devote  himself,  as  well  as  the  property 
and  influence  that  God  has  given  him,  to  the  promotion 
of  the  Redeemer's  kingdom ;  will  destroy  the  selfish- 
ness that  is  natural  to  the  carnal  heart ;  and  it  will 
arouse  him  to  engage  in  bold  and  extended  efforts  for 
the  subjection  of  a  hostile  world,  to  the  gracious  sway 
of  the  Prince  of  Peace. 

Nor  have  we,  Christian  readers,  in  undertaking  this 
great  and  glorious  enterprise,  which  may  appear  too 
weighty  for  mortals,  any  just  ground  of  fear  and  dis- 
couragement. The  Lord  Jesus,  when  he  gave  the  com- 
mand "to  disciple  all  nations,"  knew,  better  than  we 
can  know,  all  the  discouragements  that  must  be  met  in 
accomplishing  this  object.  The  power  necessary  to 
success  is  all  lodged  in  his  own  hand,  and  infallibly 
sure  to  render  efficient  labour  faithfully  performed. 
Under  this  view  of  the  subject,  and  with  the  whole 
world  before  them  as  the  field  of  their  labours,  the 
Apostles  were  not  discouraged ;  nor  did  the  opposition 
of  the  powers  of  darkness,  or  of  combined  and  formid- 
able systems  of  idolatry,  dismay  them.  The  Divine 
command  was  the  rule  of  their  duty.  It  ought  to  be 
sufficient  to  settle  the  question  of  duty  in  every  mind. 
And  if  the  Church,  when  few  in  number,  and  limited 


PLAN   OP   THE  WORK.  27 


in  -worldly  resources,  was  eager  to  engage  in  the  dis- 
charge of  the  great  commission,  how  much  more  willing 
should  she  be  now  to  penetrate  the  enemies'  country, 
when  she  has  both  the  men  and  the  means  necessary 
for  the  enterprise ;  when  spies  have  gone  out  in  all  di- 
rections, carefully  surveyed  the  heathen  nations,  and 
brought  back  a  favourable  report.  The  churches  that 
have  engaged  in  the  work  of  missions  cannot  now 
retreat  without  giving  the  heathen  cause  to  reproach 
Jehovah,  as  being  unable  to  bring  his  people  up  into 
the  land  of  promise.  Having  put  their  hand  to  the 
plough,  they  must  not  look  back.  As  additional  in- 
formation regarding  the  condition  and  prospects  of  the 
heathen,  in  one  of  the  most  ancient  and  important 
parts  of  the  world,  may  stimulate  to  exertion  and  con- 
tribute to  success,  the  author  has  been  induced  to  lay 
these  pages  before  the  public. 

The  plan  which  it  is  designed  to  pursue  is,  to  give  a 
brief  view  of  the  extent  of  the  mission  field  in  Hin- 
dustan, and  the  way  in  which,  the  providence  of  God 
has  laid  it  open  for  the  introduction  of  the  gospel ;  of 
the  various  tribes  and  nations  that  inhabit  that  land 
of  moral  darkness ;  of  the  general  appearance  of  the 
country ;  of  its  climate,  soil,  productions,  and  govern- 
ment; of  the  domestic  and  social  condition  of  the 
Hindus,  their  superstitions  and  idolatrous  observances ; 
of  their  literature  and  religion,  the  nature  of  their 
idolatrous  worship,  and  the  numerous  sects  into  which 
they  are  divided ;  of  the  difficulties  to  be  encountered 
in  the  evangelization  of  India,  arising  from  the  variety 
of  languages  spoken,  the  ignorance  and  prejudices  of 
the  Hindus,  the   construction  of  society,  as  existing 


28  .  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


in  castes,  the  moral  degradation  of  the  people  at  large, 
and  the  stupendous  system  of  idolatry  that  has  so  long 
been  established  in  the  land.  We  shall  then,  as  a 
contrast  to  this  dark  side  of  the  picture,  present,  in 
detail  a  view  of  the  efforts  that  are  now  being  put 
forth  to  spread  the  gospel  in  India,  as  far  as  these 
have  come  under  our  own  observation,  and  of  the  suc- 
cess that  has  attended  these  faithful  and  self-denying 
labours.  In  conclusion,  we  shall  endeavour  to  give  an 
outline  of  the  labours,  progress,  and  prospects  of  the 
Lodiana  mission,  in  the  far  north-west  provinces  of 
Hindustan ;  and  then  urge  upon  the  Churches  of  Christ 
the  importance  of  increased  efforts  on  behalf  of  the 
Hindus. 


INDIA   ACCESSIBLE    TO    MISSIONARIES.  29 


CHAPTER  II. 

India  as  a  field  of  missions  fully  open — Harmony  and  zeal  of  mis- 
sionaries— Their  location — Supply  of  labourers  inadequate — 
Variety  of  tribes  and  nations  occupying  the  country — Hindu 
sects — Appearance  of  India — A  missionary's  impressions  on 
reaching  its  benighted  shores — Bodies  of  the  dead  floating  in 
the  Ganges — Burning  of  the  dead — Scenery  in  Bengal  and 
Northern  India — Valley  of  the  Ganges — Population  immense — 
Himalaya  mountains — Sanatariums — Climate  of  the  plains — 
Hot  winds — Fertility  of  the  soil — Modes  of  agriculture — Rainy 
season — British  government  in  India — Former  connection  with 
idolatry — Christianity  excluded  from  government  schools  ami 
colleges — A  call  on  Christians  to  spread  the  gospel. 

India,  geographically  considered,  is  one  of  the  most 
extensive,  the  most  interesting  and  populous  portions 
of  the  globe.  It  is  a  vast  empire,  embracing  between 
the  snowy  ranges  of  the  Himalaya  mountains  on  the 
north,  and  Cape  Comorin  on  the  south,  a  distance  of 
about  two  thousand  miles,  and  of  Burmah  and  Assam 
on  the  east,  and  Afghanistan  on  the  west,  a  distance 
nearly  as  great,  a  population  of  not  less  than  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  millions  of  the  human  family,  who,  in 
the  providence  of  that  God,  who  giveth  the  kingdoms 
of  the  nations  to  whomsoever  he  will,  have  been  placed 
under  either  the  immediate  government  or  the  'protec- 
tion of  the  British  nation.  Into  every  harbour  and 
port  around  that  extensive  coast,  the  missionary  of  the 
cross  may  now  enter  with  the  utmost  security ;  and  in 
every  city  and  village  throughout  the  length  and  breadth 

3* 


30  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


of  the  land,  he  may  stand  up  amid  crowds  of  heathen, 
and  proclaim  the  messages  of  salvation,  no  man  daring 
to  forbid  him.  The  broad  shield  of  the  British  govern- 
ment is  extended  for  his  protection  in  the  proper  dis- 
charge of  his  important  duties,  as  an  ambassador  of 
Christ  to  the  multitudes  that  may  assemble  to  listen  to 
his  message.  In  short,  a  great  and  an  effectual  door 
has,  by  Divine  Providence,  been  opened  up  to  this  im- 
portant part  of  the  Gentile  world ;  and  now,  from  time 
to  time,  through  the  instrumentality  of  missionaries, 
the  story  of  India's  woes  comes  up  before  the  churches 
in  England  and  America,  and  from  the  beautiful  but 
Pagan  shores  of  that  dark  land,  comes  also,  on  the 
wings  of  the  wind,  the  loud  cry  of  the  man  of  Mace- 
donia, saying,  "  Come  over  and  help  us ;  and  if  you 
cannot  come,  0  send,  and  send  speedily,  that  assistance 
which  you  have  it  in  your  power  to  impart ;  send  that 
blessed  gospel  which  has  done  so  much  for  you,  and 
which  alone  can  raise  us  from  the  wretched  condition 
in  which  we  are,  to  a  participation  in  the  hopes  and 
blessings  of  Christianity." 

About  fifty  years  ago,  India  was  but  partially 
under  the  sway  of  the  British  government,  and  on 
account  of  the  infidelity  of  many  of  those  who,  at  that 
time,  were  intrusted  with  her  public  affairs,  the  doors 
of  access  to  her  benighted  millions  were,  in  a  great 
measure,  closed  against  the  efforts  of  missionaries; 
yet  even  then,  when  dark  and  dismal  clouds  rested 
upon  Europe,  that  seemed  ready  to  burst  and  de- 
molish liberty  and  religion,  most  of  the  great  benevo- 
lent societies  that  are  the  glory  of  our  age  sprung 
into  existence.      Then  missionary  societies  were   or- 


HARMONY   OF   MISSIONARIES.  31 


ganized,  and  men  were  sent  to  the  East  and  the  West, 
to  proclaim  the  unsearchable  riches  of  Christ  to  the 
long  neglected  heathen.  It  was  then  that  the  sad  con- 
dition of  the  Hindus  deeply  affected  the  hearts  of 
Thomas,  Carey,  Marshman,  Ward,  and  others,  and  dis- 
posed them  cheerfully  to  forsake  their  privileges  and 
their  homes  in  Christian  lands,  and  joyfully  to  spend 
and  be  spent  in  making  known  the  gospel  of  the  grace 
of  God,  to  the  perishing  millions  of  India,  and  in  pio- 
neering their  way  to  a  work  that  was  then  surrounded 
by  immense  difficulties. 

From  that  time,  till  the  present  day,  some  hundreds 
of  men  and  women,  filled  with  the  same  spirit,  have 
followed  in  the  footsteps  of  these  fathers  of  modern 
missions.  Almost  all  the  branches  of  the  Christian 
Church,  both  in  Britain  and  America,  have  taken  part 
in  this  great  and  holy  enterprise ;  and  have,  in  the  har- 
mony of  their  operations,  and  by  their  fraternal  co- 
operation, and  the  exercise  of  much  Christian  love, 
whilst  labouring  under  distinct  banners,  and  in  connec- 
tion with  different  missionary  societies,  given  to  the  in- 
fidel world  a  demonstration  of  Christian  unity,  harmony, 
and  zeal,  which  they  may  not  have  expected ;  and  which 
in  their  minds,  as  well  as  in  the  minds  of  the  inquisitive 
heathen,  must  make  a  most  powerful  impression  in  fa- 
vour of  Christianity.  In  fact,  we  have  in  India,  I 
rejoice  to  say,  a  good  exhibition  of  the  practical  work- 
ings of  what  is  known  in  the  Christian  world,  of  late 
years,  by  the  name  of  the  Evangelical  Alliance,  and 
which  is  destined,  we  doubt  not,  to  do  so  much  for  the 
cause  of  true  religion. 

These  missionaries  have  planted  themselves  in  differ- 


32  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


ent  parts  of  that  immense  empire.  A  considerable 
number  are  to  be  found  at  the  capitals  of  the  three 
Presidencies  of  Calcutta,  Bombay,  and  Madras.  Some, 
as  the  missionaries  of  the  Propagation  Society,  of  the 
American  Board,  and  of  the  Wesleyan  Society,  have 
devoted  their  labours  principally  among  the  Tamulians 
of  Ceylon,  Travancore,  Tinavelly,  Trichinopoly,  Ma- 
dura, Dinclugal,  Madras,  &c.  London  missionaries  are 
labouring  at  Bangalore,  Bellary,  Vizagapatam,  and 
Belgaum,  to  the  west  and  north  of  Madras;  also,  in 
Calcutta  and  at  various  stations  on  the  banks  of  the 
Ganges,  as  high  up  as  Mirzapur.  Missionaries  of  the 
Church  of  England  are  to  be  found  at  Calcutta,  Banaras, 
and  other  places  up  the  country.  Baptist  missionaries 
are  labouring  successfully  at  Cuttack  and  Poori,  (where 
is  the  famous  temple  of  Jagatnath,)  and  other  places  in 
central  India ;  also  at  Calcutta,  Cutwa,  Monghyr,  Patna, 
Banaras,  Chunar,  Agra,  Muttra,  and  Delhi.  Mission- 
aries of  the  Free  Church  of  Scotland  are  labouring  in 
Calcutta,  Madras,  Bombay,  Poonah,  and  Nagpur. 
Missionaries  of  the  Scottish  Established  Church  also 
are  found  in  Calcutta.  Missionaries  of  the  American 
Board  in  Western  India,  are  found  in  Bombay,  Ahmed- 
nuggar,  &c.  Missionaries  from  the  Presbyterian 
Church  in  Ireland  are  carrying  on  their  labours  in 
Gujer&t  and  Candeish,  on  both  sides  of  the  Gulf  of 
Cambay,  at  Rajcote,  Gogel,  and  Soorat.  Missionaries 
from  the  General  Assembly  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 
in  the  United  States,  and  also  from  the  Reformed  Pres- 
byterian Church,  with  which  it  is  my  happiness  to  be 
connected,  about  twenty-five  in  all,  are  labouring  in 
North  India,  at  Lodi&na,  Saharanpur,  Sabathu,  Jallan- 


SUPPLY   INADEQUATE.  33 


dar,  Allahabad,  Fathagarh,  Farrackabad,  Mynpuri  and 
Agra.  These  are  some  of  the  principal  places  in  Hin- 
dustan, where  the  gospel  has  been  planted;  and  though 
the  list,  while  not  as  full  as  it  might  be,  may  seem  large 
to  some,  yet  any  one  who  will  take  the  trouble  of  mark- 
ing off  these  places  on  a  map  of  India,  and  then  exa- 
mining the  parts  that  are  destitute  of  the  gospel,  will 
at  once  discover,  that  compared  with  the  immense  tracts 
of  country  still  remaining  in  Pagan  darkness,  and  the 
numerous  and  populous  cities,  where  the  news  of  salva- 
tion has  never  yet  been  made  known,  these  mission 
stations  are  indeed  few  and  far  between.  It  must  also 
be  remembered,  that  at  many  of  these  places,  mission- 
ary operations  have  not  long  commenced;  that  some 
of  the  men  who  labour,  are  still  imperfect  in  the  lan- 
guages spoken  by  the  people ;  and  that  in  many  in- 
stances, where  the  torch  of  gospel  truth  has  but  lately 
been  kindled,  its  dim  blaze  can  hardly  be  discovered  in 
the  midst  of  the  gross  darkness,  that  like  the  pall  of 
death  rests  upon  that  miserable  people.  Not  one  sta- 
tion that  has  been  occupied  has  a  supply  of  the  gospel 
at  all  proportioned  to  its  wants,  or  which,  without  a 
miracle,  is  likely  to  make  that  sudden  and  decided  im- 
pression on  the  minds  of  the  heathen  multitudes,  which 
sanguine  Christians  at  home  may  be  led  to  expect. 
For  what  is  one,  or  what  are  two  missionaries,  placed 
in  a  city  of  a  hundred  thousand  idolaters,  and  sur- 
rounded by  villages  in  the  immediate  vicinity  containing 
a  population  of  as  many  more  ?  And  then  let  it  be 
remembered,  that  often  hundreds  of  miles  intervene  be- 
tween mission  stations,  where  heathenism  must  remain 
undisturbed,  unless  where  at  distant  periods  a  mission- 


34  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


ary  may  happen  to  pass  along,  and  preach  a  sermon, 
or  distribute  portions  of  divine  truth,  in  the  form  of 
scriptures  and  tracts.  We  ought,  indeed,  to  give  thanks 
to  God,  that  the  great  and  blessed  work  of  India's 
evangelization  has  been  so  auspiciously  commenced ;  but 
let  no  one  suppose,  that  because  it  has  been  commenced, 
the  victory  has  been  obtained,  or  that  nothing  more 
needs  to  be  done,  in  order  to  sweep  away  the  immense 
accumulations  of  idolatry  and  superstition  that  thou- 
sands of  years  have  been  gathering  around  the  Hindu 
people,  and  by  which  the  powers  of  darkness  continue  to 
hold  them  as  in  chains  of  adamant.  Let  us  rejoice  that 
so  vast  a  country,  teeming  with  idolaters,  is,  in  the 
fullest  sense,  open  to  the  gospel,  and  that  the  missionary 
of  the  Cross  may  there  lift  up  his  voice  in  exposing  the 
popular  superstitions,  and  in  opposition  to  idolatry,  and 
in  making  known  the  Saviour's  name,  with  perfect  se- 
curity. And,  oh,  that  all  who  know  the  value  of  true 
religion,  in  their  own  experience,  would  feel,  that  this 
very  fact,  of  having  a  door  to  the  heathen  world  opened 
so  widely,  brings  with  it  a  corresponding  responsibility, 
and  rolls  over  an  obligation  on  every  Christian  man  and 
woman,  (an  obligation  which  they  must  not  evade,  under 
penalty  of  proving  their  profession  false,  and  of  offend- 
ing the  King  of  Zion,  who  "expects  every  man  to  do 
his  duty,")  an  obligation  to  aid  in  the  triumphs  of  the 
glorious  gospel  throughout  the  dark  and  deluded  nations 
of  the  earth.  We  would  here  take  the  opportunity  of 
saying,  with  regard  to  the  field  of  missions  in  Hindustan, 
that,  in  our  opinion,  it  is  just  at  present  as  widely 
opened  for  the  introduction  of  the  gospel,  as  it  is  ever 
likely  to  be  until  the  Church  of  Christ  goes  in,  and  by 


TRIBES   AND   NATIONS.  35 


her  personal  efforts  opens  it  wider.  If  the  Churches 
■would  at  once  send  us  a  thousand  missionaries  for  India, 
we  could  give  to  each  a  city  and  district  of  more  than 
a  hundred  thousand  inhabitants  as  the  field  of  his  la- 
bour, and  place  each  of  them  more  than  a  hundred 
miles  apart !  This  being  the  case,  it  is  a  serious  ques- 
tion whether  the  people  of  God,  in  their  monthly  con- 
certs for  prayer,  should  any  longer  ask  God  to  open 
up  the  way  for  the  spread  of  the  gospel  among  the 
heathen,  until  they  are  prepared  to  go  in  and  occupy 
the  fields  he  has  already  opened. 

But  while  presenting  a  general  view  of  the  aspect 
of  India,  and  before  Ave  enter  on  a  more  particular 
account  of  the  state  of  the  people,  and  the  progress 
of  the  gospel  through  missionary  instrumentality,  we 
must  not  neglect  to  state,  that  when  we  speak  of  India, 
we  are  not  to  be  understood  as  describing  a  single 
people,  the  Hindus  alone ;  for  the  country  is  occupied 
by  a  great  variety  of  tribes  and  nations,  quite  different 
from  each  other  in  habits,  in  religion,  and  in  language. 
In  many  parts  of  the  country,  and  particularly  in  the 
north-west,  the  Mohammedan  population  is  equal  to  that 
of  the  Hindus.  The  Sikhs  are  a  nation  by  themselves, 
which  has  lately  been  brought  within  the  reach  of  the 
gospel.  They  profess  to  be  guided  in  religion  and  po- 
litics by  the  Granth,  a  book  written  by  Nanak  Shah, 
in  which  he  inculcates  universal  tolerance  among  sects, 
and  labours  to  persuade  Hindus  and  Mohammedans  that 
all  the  essential  parts  of  their  creeds  are  common  to 
both,  and  that  they  should  give  up  all  differences 
in  practice,  and  all  corruptions  of  their  teachers,  for 
the  worship  of  the  one  great  Supreme,  whether  under 


36  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


the  name  of  Allah  or  the  Hindu  deities !  With  these 
principles,  however,  the  Sikhs  are  not  consistent,  for, 
to  a  certain  extent,  they  are  still  Hindus  in  practice. 
They  venerate  the  idols  of  the  Hindus,  celebrate  their 
festivals,  make  pilgrimages  to  their  shrines,  pay  great 
veneration  to  the  Brahmins,  and  draw  most  of  their 
legends  and  literature  from  the  Shasters.  Again,  the 
whole  of  the  mountain  ranges  of  Central  India  are 
peopled  by  what  may  be  called  the  aborigines  of  the 
country.  These  tribes  called  the  Bheels,  the  Kunds, 
the  Coles,  &c,  are  very  numerous,  and  in  habits,  lan- 
guage, and  religion,  they  all  differ  nearly  as  much  from 
each  other,  as  they  do  from  the  Hindus  themselves. 
Some  of  these  tribes  are  in  such  a  barbarous  condition, 
that  they  are  accustomed  annually  to  sacrifice  a  number 
of  their  female  children  to  their  gods,  to  offer  literally 
"the  fruit  of  their  bodies  for  the  sin  of  their  souls." 
That  a  stop  might  be  put  to  this  inhuman  practice, 
English  commissioners  have  been  sent  amongst  them, 
and  they  have  succeeded  in  releasing  from  prison  a 
large  number  of  female  children,  where  they  were  in 
keeping  until  the  day  of  slaughter.  These  have  been 
placed  in  mission  schools,  to  be  brought  up  in  the  fear 
and  service  of  the  living  God. 

But  not  only  do  such  varieties  exist  outside  the 
Hindu  family,  but  they  exist  to  a  great  extent  within 
its  own  pale.  We  shall  have  occasion,  in  another 
place,  to  notice  some  of  the  sects  and  parties  so  differ- 
ent in  belief  and  in  practice  which  are  nourished  under 
the  wing  of  Hinduism.  The  language,  and  many  of 
the  customs  of  the  Maharatas,  the  Tamulians,  the  Cin- 
galese, the   Bengalis,  and  the  Hindus    of  Northern 


APPEARANCE    OF    INDIA.  37 


India,  and  the  mountain  tribes  of  the  Himalayas,  are 
all  very  different ;  and  to  labour  efficiently  for  the  spi- 
ritual welfare  of  any  of  these  classes,  requires  a  special 
preparation  on  the  part  of  a  missionary.  This  state 
of  things,  although  in  itself  an  obstacle  to  the  spread 
of  Christianity  at  the  commencement  of  missionary 
operations,  is  likely  in  the  end  to  turn  out  rather  to  the 
furtherance  of  the  gospel,  inasmuch  as  it  shows  dis- 
tinctly that  Hinduism,  as  a  whole,  is  not  that  one  and 
undivided,  unaltered  and  unalterable  religion  which  its 
adherents  would  have  us  to  suppose,  but  that  the  various 
and  opposing  sects  which  it  embodies,  and  the  conflict- 
ing opinions  which  it  tolerates,  are  likely,  by  and  by, 
to  be  the  very  elements  by  which  it  is  to  crumble  to 
pieces,  when  truth  has  fairly  confronted  error,  and 
openings  are  made  by  which  that  truth  may  find  its 
way  into  the  citadel  of  superstition  and  bigotry  which 
now  guards  the  whole  system  of  idolatry  in  Hindustan. 
With  regard  to  the  appearance  of  India,  the  lan- 
guage of  Heber,  that  "  every  prospect  pleases  and  only 
man  is  vile,"  is,  in  general,  correct;  and  that  so  fair 
a  spot  of  God's  creation  should  so  long  be  usurped 
and  monopolized  by  the  prince  of  darkness,  is  only  an- 
other proof  of  his  pride  and  presumption,  who  entered 
Eden's  happy  bowers,  and  by  the  temptation  and  fall 
of  our  first  parents,  "brought  death  into  the  world  and 
all  our  woes."  This  strange  commixture  of  the  beau- 
tiful and  sublime  in  creation,  with  the  degradation  and 
depravity  of  human  nature,  strikes  the  missionary  most 
forcibly  as  he  draws  near  the  shores  and  "  coral  strands" 
of  India.  The  first  object  usually  that  meets  the  eye  of 
the  devoted  man  from  the  day  he  took  his  last  farewell 

4 


38  MISSIONS    IN    HINDUSTAN. 


of  friends  and  country,  after  having,  during  a  voyage 
of  four  or  five  months,  passed  over  about  eighteen 
thousand  miles  of  ocean,  is  the  black  pagoda  or  temple 
of  Jagatnath,  on  the  shores  of  Orissa,  at  the  head  of 
the  Bay  of  Bengal ;  and  -when  he  beholds  that  shrine, 
•where  deeds  darker  than  the  shrine  itself  have  been 
perpetrated  for  ages,  and  where  the  idol  car  has  crushed 
its  thousands  beneath  its  ponderous  wheels,  his  heart 
is  filled  with  sympathy  and  sorrow,  and  an  ardent  desire 
fills  it,  to  be  able  at  once  to  lift  up  his  voice  against 
such  delusions  of  Satan,  and  to  tell  the  weary  pilgrim 
to  this  aceldema,  or  field  of  blood,  of  Him  who  has 
provided  a  free  salvation  for  the  lost,  and  who  invites 
men  of  every  nation  to  come  to  him  for  rest  and  com- 
fort. In  a  short  time  the  ship  enters  the  Hoogley. 
She  has  passed  on  her  right  Sagor  Island,  another  ce- 
lebrated place  of  pilgrimage,  where  the  waters  of  the 
Ganges  mingle  with  the  ocean,  and  Avhere,  in  former 
times,  ere  the  merciful  laws  of  a  Christian  people  put 
a  stop  to  the  dreadful  practice,  as  being  murderous  in 
the  highest  degree,  multitudes  of  heathen  mothers,  in 
fulfilment  of  vows  extorted  from  them  by  the  priests, 
committed  their  first-born  infants  to  the  greedy  sharks 
who  had  congregated  there  to  receive  their  prey,  and 
who  often  tore  them  to  pieces  before  their  eyes !  As 
the  missionary  approaches  Calcutta,  he  is  assured  that 
he  draws  near  to  a  heathen  city,  by  the  sickening  sights 
he  is  called  to  witness.  Bark  and  naked  multitudes 
of  the  living  may  be  seen  along  the  banks  or  in  the 
water,  performing  their  idolatrous  rites,  while  many 
of  the  bodies  of  the  dead  continue  to  float  by  the  ves- 
sel in  all  stages  of  putrefaction,  and  covered  with  birds 


DEVOTION   TO   THE   GANGES.  39 


of  prey  tearing  the  flesh  from  the  hones !  This  dis- 
gusting spectacle  is  occasioned  by  the  singular  custom 
among  the  Hindus,  of  placing  the  bodies  of  the  dead 
on  the  funeral  pile  and  consuming  them  to  ashes,  as  is 
the  general  custom  in  the  upper  provinces  or  at  places 
remote  from  the  sacred  river,  or  of  casting  them  into 
some  stream,  and  if  possible  the  Ganges,  when  too  poor 
to  obtain  the  wood  necessary  for  the  former  purpose. 
In  their  estimation,  the  Ganges  is  the  most  sacred  of 
all  rivers,  even  a  personification  of  the  goddess  Gunga 
herself,  and  hence,  to  drink  the  waters  at  the  moment 
of  death,  and  then  to  have  the  body  cast  into  the  stream, 
is  considered  an  effectual  means  of  purification  from  sin, 
and  the  direct  way  to  the  Hindus'  heaven,  absorption 
in  the  Deity.  Often,  when  going  up  and  down  the 
Ganges  afterward,  have  we  witnessed  these  horrid  rites 
and  disgusting  spectacles.  We  have  passed  in  our 
boat,  during  the  course  of  a  single  day,  scores  of  dead 
bodies  floating  in  the  stream  or  cast  upon  the  banks, 
where  the  pariah  dogs,  the  vultures,  and  the  jackalls, 
were  quarrelling  for  their  prey  and  tearing  it  to 
pieces.  We  have  seen  the  poor  heathen  mother,  at 
the  dusk  of  evening,  come  down  to  the  banks  of 
the  river  with  the  dead  body  of  her  child  wrapped  in 
a  dirty  cloth,  and,  close  to  our  boat,  make  with  her 
own  hands  a  rude  float  of  reeds,  place  the  child  upon 
it,  and  then  push  the  whole  into  the  current,  in  the 
hope  of  its  being  carried  on  in  due  time  to  the  sea,  and 
lost  in  the  ocean  of  the  Supreme.  So  holy  do  they 
consider  this  river,  that  not  only  are  the  dead,  and  the 
ashes  of  the  dead  cast  into  it,  but  the*  dying  from  all 
quarters  are  carried  to  its  banks  by  their  friends,  that 


40  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


being  buried  in  it  to  the  neck,  and  having  the  holy 
water  poured  plentifully  down  their  throats,  often  to 
suffocation,  they  may  be  cleansed  from  their  sins  and 
be  prepared  for  a  happy  death !     The  place  at  Saha- 
ranpur,  where  the  dead  are  burned,  is  not  far  from  our 
mission  dwellings,  and  during  the  prevalence  of  sick- 
ness, the  fires  are  seldom  extinguished.     Horrible  as 
these  sights  at  first  appear  to  strangers,  they  must 
certainly  be  much  less  so  now  than  in  former  times, 
when  the  living  wife  or  wives  were  consumed  on  the 
same  pile  with  the  body  of  the  dead  husband.     Then 
the  poor  trembling  widow,  in  compliance  with  the  an- 
cient custom,  in  view  of  the  disgrace  that  awaited  her 
should  she  refuse  to  burn  for  her  husband,  in  hope  of 
meriting  great  blessings  for  herself  and  all  her  friends, 
and  urged  on  to  commit  the  deed  of  self-destruction  by 
the  Brahmins,  as  being  in  accordance  with  the  injunc- 
tions of  their  sacred  books,  mounted  the  pile  of  wood, 
beneath  which  were  abundance  of  combustible  mate- 
rials, saturated  with  oil  or  ghee  to  make  them  burn 
fiercely,  and  then  taking  the  dead  body  in  her  arms, 
stretched   herself  down  and  submitted  to    her   fate. 
And  who  do  you  suppose  was  the  person  that  placed 
the  torch  to  that  pile  which  consumed  the  living  and 
the  dead  together  ?     The  eldest  son  of  that  mother, 
if  she  had  a  son,  and  if  not,  the  nedrest  relative  was 
the  one  who  performed  these  funereal  rites,  and  who 
considered  himself  highly  honoured  by  the  inhuman 
act.     It  is  cause  of  thankfulness  that  this  practice  has 
been  checked  by  British  law ;  yet  still  cases  are  not 
uncommon,  whefe  in  secret,  and  in  violation  of  law, 
the  suttee  is  kindled  in  India.     A  case  occurred  near 


SCENERY    IX    BENGAL.  41 


Sahdranpur  only  a  few  years  ago,  when,  in  spite  of  all 
the  efforts  of  the  police,  a  woman  jumped  upon  the 
pile  and  consumed  herself  to  ashes.  At  the  death  of 
Ranjit  Singh,  the  Emperor  of  the  Panjab,  during  our 
residence  in  India,  seven  of  his  wives  consumed  them- 
selves with  his  dead  body,  and  the  grand  procession 
passed  through  SaMranpiir,  conveying  the  ashes  of 
the  whole  to  the  Ganges,  to  be  sprinkled  on  the  sacred 
waters  at  Hardwar,  together  with  the  golden  bedstead 
on  which  the  Maha  Raja  slept,  elephants,  camels,  and 
wealth  in  abundance,  to  be  offered  to  the  Brahmins, 
who  had  prompted  these  miserable  beings  to  this  act 
of  self-immolation !  So  far  as  it  regards  the  manner 
in  which  the  Hindus  dispose  of  their  dead,  it  matters 
little ;  but,  oh,  the  souls  of  these  heathen,  that  will 
never  die,  where  are  they  ?  Having  lived  in  sin,  and 
passing  into  eternity  unsanctified,  and  without  a  know- 
ledge of  the  only  Saviour,  they  are  beyond  the  reach 
of  our  efforts  and  our  hopes. 

The  scenery  in  Bengal  is  generally  delightful.  The 
groves  of  palm-trees,  with  their  naked  trunks,  crowned 
with  the  richest  foliage,  give  a  tropical  and  magnificent 
appearance  to  the  landscape.  The  immense  green 
leaves  of  the  plantain,  surrounding  a  pithy  stem,  bend- 
ing under  a  load  of  fruit  at  all  seasons  of  the  year ; 
the  green  carpet  which  covers  the  ground  at  all  times, 
but  which  grows  with  such  rapidity  during  the  rainy 
season ;  the  magnificent  shoots  of  the  bdmbus,  which 
rise  to  the  height  of  forty  or  fifty  feet  in  a  single  year; 
and  the  banydns,  which  extend  their  mighty  arms  to 
such  a  distance  as  to  require  support,  a  support  which 
nature  herself  supplies  by  throwing  down  props  which 

4* 


42  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


take  root,  and  finally  become  trunks  and  centres  them- 
selves of  vast  and  spreading  thickets;  these  all  give 
to  Bengal  a  character  for  grandeur  and  luxuriance, 
which  is  but  rarely  equalled  in  other  parts  of  the  globe. 
The  provinces  to  the  north-west,  however,  the  seat  of 
our  missions,  and  particularly  Lodiana  and  its  neigh- 
bourhood, have  usually  a  very  different  appearance. 
Many  tracts  of  country  are  barren  and  sandy  in  con- 
sequence of  the  long  droughts,  and  the  scorching  in- 
fluence of  the  hot  winds,  which  prevail  for  several 
months  in  the  year.  Still,  even  in  these  districts, 
during  the  rains,  vegetation  is  rapid  and  luxuriant; 
and  at  all  times,  mangoe  groves  may  be  found  at  almost 
every  town  and  village,  which  afford  delightful  shade 
and  shelter  to  the  traveller  who  pitches  his  tent  beneath 
their  branches,  or  in  the  absence  of  such  accommoda- 
tion, stretches  his  weary  limbs  on  the  bare  ground,  and 
seeks  repose  during  the  heat  of  the  day. 

The  valley  of  the  Ganges,  in  some  places  of  great 
width,  extends  from  Hardwar,  where  that  river  issues 
from  the  mountain  passes,  to  the  sea,  a  distance  of  about 
fourteen  hundred  miles.  As  this  queen  of  Indian 
rivers  is  supposed  to  possess  the  greatest  efficacy  in 
the  removal  of  sin,  the  population  along  its  banks  is 
immense,  and  the  numbers  that  crowd  to  it  at  all  sea- 
sons for  the  purposes  of  ablution,  and  of  conveying  its 
muddy  waters  to  all  parts  of  India,  to  be  used  in  the 
performance  of  religious  rites,  and  in  offerings  to  the 
obscene  symbols  of  Mahadev,  or  the  great  god  of  the 
Hindus,  are  beyond  all  calculation.  This  extensive 
valley,  together  with  other  parts  of  the  country  where 
the  surface  is  perfectly  level,  is  called  the  plains  of 


--,  ' 


SANATAMUMS CLIMATE.  43 


India,  as  distinguished  from  the  hilly  regions  in  the 
centre,  and  the  immense  chain  of  the  Himalayas,  run- 
ning all  the  way  from  Burmah  or  Cochin  China  in  the 
east,  to  the  valley  of  Cashmere,  and  even  through 
Bochara  almost  to  the  Caspian  Sea  in  the  north-west. 
During  the  last  twenty  years,  the  English  have  esta- 
blished sanatariums  at  various  places  along  these 
mountains,  at  Simla,  Sabathu,  Kassowli,Mussuri,  Lan- 
dour,  Ninitall,  Almorah,  and  Darjiling ;  and  at  points 
of  elevation  varying  from  five  to  nine  thousand  feet, 
affording  at  all  seasons  air  and  climate  most  congenial 
and  beneficial  to  the  European,  whose  constitution 
may  have  been  broken  down  by  the  heat,  or  by  fevers 
contracted  in  the  plains ;  and  for  many  diseases  inci- 
dent to  that  burning  climate,  a  temporary  residence 
at  these  places  has  effected  complete  cures.  Mis- 
sionaries, who  have  sometimes  been  compelled  to  avail 
themselves  of  these  advantages  in  times  of  sickness,  or  • 
when  worn  down  by  debility,  have  generally  derived 
the  greatest  benefit;  and  several  lives,  through  the 
Divine  blessing,  have  been  saved  by  this  means  alone. 
Thus  a  wise  and  benignant  Providence  seems  to  have 
made  provision  for  the  health  and  happiness  of  man 
in  all  parts  of  the  earth,  and  to  have  set  over  against 
the  peculiar  trials  and  inconveniencies  of  climate,  a 
compensation  of  special  advantages  and  comforts. 

The  climate  of  India  is  quite  peculiar,  and  alto- 
gether different  from  England  or  America.  The  rains 
come  on  periodically.  They  generally  commence  about 
the  middle  or  20th  of  June,  and  end  early  in  Septem- 
ber, and  during  this  time,  particularly  in  Bengal,  but 
few  days  pass  when  the  rain  does  not  fall  in  torrents. 


44  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


With  the  exception  of  the  early  and  latter  rain,  which 
is  not  abundant,  and  which  falls  in  November,  during 
seed  time,  and  in  March  about  the  time  of  earing, 
showers  are  not  expected,  and  we  have  frequently 
seen  a  period  of  four  months  or  longer  elapse  without 
rain  of  any  kind.  In  the  upper  provinces,  the  hot 
winds  begin  to  blow  early  in  April,  and  continue  with 
increased  fury  until  the  rains,  in  June,  cool  the  earth, 
and  put  an  end  to  them.  The  feeling  occasioned  by 
these  winds  is  like  that  which  would  be  experienced  by 
the  blast  of  a  heated  furnace,  and  the  effect  produced 
is  to  dry  up  the  skin,  and  weaken  the  human  system. 
The  steam  or  heat  also  which  arises  from  the  earth  in 
the  middle  of  the  day  at  this  season,  is  almost  intole- 
rable, and  induces  a  sense  of  suffocation.  Europeans, 
and  even  natives  themselves  who  have  a  regard  to 
health,  rarely  venture  out  in  the  heat  of  the  clay,  but 
employ  themselves,  as  best  they  can,  within  doors, 
firmly  closed  to  keep  out  the  penetrating  heat.  It  is 
during  this  period  that  missionaries  are  engaged  either 
in  studying  languages,  or  in  preparing  tracts  and 
books  for  the  press.  Advantage,  however,  is  taken  of 
these  hot  winds,  and  they  are  turned  to  good  account 
by  causing  the  evaporation  they  produce,  when  thrown 
in  contact  with  moisture,  to  create  a  degree  of  cold  in 
dwellings,  which  is  exceedingly  grateful  and  refresh- 
ing. This  is  done  in  the  following  way:  A  frame 
work  of  bambus  is  thinly  thatched  over  with  the 
fibrous  roots  of  a  fragrant  grass,  called  kus  kus,  so  as 
to  admit  a  considerable  quantity  of  air  to  pass  through 
it.  This  is  fitted  into  the  door  case,  and  watered 
every  few  minutes  on  the  outside.     The  evaporation, 


EXPEDIENTS   TO   MODIFY   THE   HEAT.  45 


which  goes  on  rapidly,  on  account  of  the  extreme  dry- 
ness of  the  atmosphere,  cools  the  heated  air  as  it 
passes  through  the  tatty,  and  greatly  modifies  the  heat 
within,  so  as  to  reduce  the  temperature  several  degrees. 
In  addition  to  this,  punkhas  are  kept  moving  over  the 
heads  of  those  who  can  afford  to  pay  the  small  sum 
necessary,  and  these  also  add  greatly  to  the  health  and 
comfort  of  foreigners.  Punkhas  are  frames  of  wood 
about  two  and  a  half  feet  wide,  and  almost  the  length 
of  the  room,  covered  with  muslin,  and  being  suspended 
from  the  roof,  are  drawn  by  a  rope  passing  through 
the  wall  from  the  outside.  Without  some  such  con- 
trivance to  moderate  the  heat  and  drive  off  the  mus- 
quitoes,  for  several  months  in  the  year  the  heat  would 
be  insufferable,  and  health  seriously  impaired.  Blind 
men  are  sometimes  employed  to  pull  the  punkhas, 
who  consider  it  a  great  favour  to  earn  about  a  dollar 
and  a  half  per  month,  from  which  they  support  them- 
selves and  families,  and  without  which  employment 
they  must  beg  their  bread.  In  the  north-west  pro- 
vinces, however,  the  seat  of  the  Lodiana  mission, 
though  the  heat  is  so  intense  during  the  hot  winds, 
there  are  three  or  four  months  in  the  year  of  delight- 
fully cool  weather,  and  those  who  may  have  suffered 
from  debility  in  the  hot  season,  usually  recover  their 
strength  during  this  period.  Autumnal  fevers,  and 
derangement  of  the  liver,  are  the  diseases  most  com- 
mon ;  but  many  persons  who  live  abstemiously,  (as  mis- 
sionaries all  do,)  enjoy  as  good  health,  on  the  whole, 
as  they  -would  be  likely  to  do  in  any  other  part  of  the 
world.  On  the  score  of  health,  the  writer  himself  is 
thankful  to  say  he  has  no  complaints  to  make. 


rz. 

i  : 

i 


46  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


The  soil  of  India  is,  in  general,  exceedingly  fertile, 
producing,  with  but  little  labour,  two  crops  in  the 
same  season.  In  the  Upper  Provinces,  wheat  sown  in 
November  is  reaped  early  in  April;  and  the  same 
ground  ploughed  at  the  commencement  of  the  rains 
in  June,  produces  another  crop  of  small  grain,  pe- 
culiar to  the  country,  which  is  reaped  in  October,  in 
time  to  prepare  the  land  again  for  another  crop  of 
wheat,  or  whatever  the  farmer  may  wish  to  cultivate. 

The  modes  of  agriculture  pursued  by  the  people  are 
remarkably  simple  and  primitive,  and  in  all  probability 
no  changes  or  improvements  have  taken  place  for 
thousands  of  years.  Not  horses,  but  oxen,  are  em- 
ployed in  hauling  and  ploughing  and  treading  out  the 
corn.  The  plough  is  an  article  of  two  small  timbers, 
put  together  in  the  rudest  manner,  and  which  merely 
scratches  the  surface  of  the  soil.  The  harrow  is  never 
used ;  but  a  thing  which  serves  the  purpose,  is  a  large 
plank  of  wood  attached  to  several  oxen,  and  drawn  side 
foremost,  on  which  a  number  of  men  sit  or  stand,  in  or- 
der to  press  it  to  the  earth,  and  render  it  more  effectual 
in  smoothing  the  soil.  After  the  grain  has  been 
ploughed  in,  and  the  ground  smoothed  off  in  this  man- 
ner, the  field  is  all  laid  out  in  beds  of  a  few  yards 
square,  with  a  margin  of  earth  a  few  inches  high  alj 
around,  and  through  these  beds  water-courses  are 
made  for  the  purposes  of  irrigation.  The  water  is 
supplied  from  large  wells,  raised  in  leather  bags  by 
neans  of  oxen,  or  by  the  Persian  wheel,  and  in  such 
quantities  as  thoroughly  to  saturate  the  soil  every  few 
days  from  the  time  the  grain  is  sown,  until  it  is  almost 
ready  for  the  sickle.     Without  this  process,  on  account 


BRITISH   GOVERNMENT.  47 


of  the  long  droughts,  but  little  could  be  raised  in 
Northern  India.  But  even  these  means  would  prove 
inadequate,  "were  it  not  for  the  abundance  of  rains  which 
fall  in  their  season,  and  on  which  depends,  in  a  great 
measure,  the  supply  of  grain  and  vegetables ;  and 
when  the  rainy  season  is  deficient,  most  fearful  and 
desolating  famines  are  the  consequence.  In  1838, 
during  our  residence  in  India,  one  of  these  famines 
prevailed  in  the  Doab,  and  swept  off,  in  the  districts 
of  Agra  and  Kaunpur,  hundreds  of  thousands  of  hu- 
man beings  by  pure  starvation.  It  was  during  this 
awful  period  that  missionary  orphan  boarding-schools 
were  filled  up,  and  many  miserable  beings,  like  living 
skeletons,  were  taken  by  the  missionaries,  and  saved 
from  dying  by  hunger.  Many  of  these,  through  their 
connection  with  Christians,  and  the  blessing  of  God 
on  the  means  employed  for  their  instruction  in  Chris- 
tian truth,  have  since  been  brought  to  partake  of  "  the 
bread  of  life."  We  fondly  hope  also,  that  many  of 
them  will  yet  be  qualified  for  holding  forth  this  bread 
of  life  to  their  perishing  countrymen.  The  land 
yields,  in  ordinary  seasons,  an  abundance  for  man 
and  beast  of  all  that  is  essential  to  subsistence.  Luxu- 
ries are  but  little  indulged  in  even  by  the  wealthy. 
A  plain  vegetable  diet  is  all  that  is  required  by 
most  of  the  Hindus.  The  chief  articles  of  produce 
raised  in  Northern  India  are  wheat,  rice,  cotton,  to- 
bacco, sugar-cane,  Indian  corn,  and  a  great  variety 
of  pulse  and  vegetables. 

The  British  government  in  India  is  mild  and  pa- 
ternal, and  the  elevation  and  happiness  of  the  people 
in  the  administration  of  just  laws,  and  the  security  of 


48  MISSIONS    IN   HINDUSTAN. 


property,  as  well  as  the  means  of  acquiring  it,  are 
certainly  much  greater  at  the  present  time  than  they 
ever  were  under  either  Mohammedan  or  Hindu  rulers. 
Every  man  is  now  permitted  "  to  sit  under  his  own  vine 
or  fig-tree,  with  none  to  make  him  afraid."  Money 
circulates  freely  and  much  more  abundantly  among 
the  people  than  it  did  for  ages.  The  greatly  increased 
intercourse  with  England  and  other  nations,  has  created 
a  market  for  many  of  its  productions,  while  the  ma- 
nufactures of  other  countries  are  coming  more  into 
demand  by  the  people  every  year.  By  means  of  the 
overland  route,  communication  can  now  be  had  with 
England  in  thirty  days.  Numerous  steamers  run  up 
the  Ganges  as  far  as  Allahabad  every  month ;  and  we 
hope,  ere  long,  to  see  a  railroad  from  the  head  of  steam 
navigation  to  Delhi,  if  not  as  far  as  Lodiana  and  the 
Sutledge,  from  whence  a  direct  communication  may  be 
had  with  Bombay.  These  improvements,  with  many 
others  of  a  public  nature,  that  are  going  forward  in 
the  country,  will  do  much  for  the  people  of  Hindustan, 
where  society  has  been  in  a  stagnant  condition  for 
thousands  of  years,  and  where  superstition  and  bigotry 
have  contracted  their  minds  to  such  a  degree  within 
their  own  narrow  sphere  of  observation.  The  Doab 
canal,  used  for  irrigation,  which  runs  past  Saharanptir 
and  on  to  Delhi,  has  been  a  public  blessing  to  the 
country;  and  the  great  Gangetic  canal,  the  largest  in 
the  world,  which  is  now  being  made  by  government,  at 
such  a  vast  expense,  and  designed  to  irrigate  the 
whole  country  from  Hardwar  to  Allahabad,  so  as  to 
prevent  a  return  of  such  famines  as  desolated  the 
country  on  former  occasions,  is  a  proof  that  the  present 


PILGRIM   TAX.  49 


rulers  of  India  seek  the  happiness  of  their  subjects. 
Indeed,  Ave  may  say,  in  reference  to  the  people  of  India 
at  the  present  time,  that  so  far  as  this  ivorld  is  con- 
cerned, were  those  customs  abolished  which  are  con- 
nected with  their  religion,  and  the  bad  state  of  society, 
by  which  some  portions  of  the  people  are  so  depend- 
ant on  others,  and  were  they  in  possession  of  that 
blessed  religion  which  brings  peace  on  earth  and  good- 
will to  men,  the  Hindus,  with  their  simple  habits  and 
their  few  wants,  might  be  said  to  be  a  happy  people. 
But,  alas!  as  idolaters,  and  as  a  nation  enslaved  by 
gross  superstition  and  immoralities ;  as  far  from  God, 
and  far  from  righteousness,  it  is  impossible  for  any  go- 
vernment to  elevate  them ;  and  hence,  true  dignity  and 
happiness  are  not  to  be  expected,  until  they  submit  to 
the  government  of  Messiah  the  Prince,  and  cast  their 
idols  to  the  moles  and  the  bats  as  lying  vanities.  Then 
indeed  will  India  become  a  delightsome  land,  even  as 
Hephzibah  and  Beulah,  for  it  shall  be  married  to  the 
Lord.  Toward  the  promotion  of  this  most  desirable 
event,  the  British  government  has  done  but  little. 
Neutrality  in  the  matter  of  religion,  is  the  rule  by 
which  the  government  professes  to  be  regulated;  but, 
we  regret  to  say,  that  so  far  from  adhering  to  this  rule, 
in  former  times,  a  ban  was  placed  on  Christianity,  while, 
both  directly  and  indirectly,  the  religion  of  the  natives 
was  supported  and  encouraged.  Under  the  plea  of 
preventing  imposition,  and  of  protecting  the  Hindu  de- 
votees at  the  public  shrines  and  places  of  pilgrimage, 
such  as  Jagatnath,  Gaya,  Allahabad,  &c,  the  govern- 
ment took  these  places  under  their  paternal  care,  and 
levied  a  tax  on  all  who  frequented  them,  by  which  a 

5 


50  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


considerable  sum  was  annually  added  to  the  revenues 
of  the  country.  How  disgraceful  and  sinful,  for  men 
calling  themselves  Christians,  to  defile  their  hands  and 
their  consciences  with  money  collected  from  deluded 
pilgrims,  which,  in  many  instances,  might  literally  he 
called  the  price  of  blood !  How  degrading  for  Chris- 
tian rulers  to  associate  themselves  with  the  worship 
of  devils ;  to  purchase  the  cloth  and  lace  to  deck  out 
the  black  and  frightful  idol  of  Jagatnath ;  to  assemble 
the  civil  and  military  officers  to  do  public  honours  to  a 
hideous  block  of  wood,  seated  on  his  car,  and  to  compel 
the  reluctant  worshippers,  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet, 
to  drag  forward  the  ponderous  vehicle  in  its  annual 
rounds,  lest  failing  in  its  course,  the  celebrity  of  the 
shrine  might  be  lessened,  or  a  public  rebellion  ensue, 
so  as  to  endanger  the  security  of  the  British  empire 
in  the  East !  Against  these  strange  proceedings,  so 
dishonourable  to  the  Christian  name,  missionaries  and 
pious  men  in  India,  long  and  loudly  protested,  until, 
backed  by  the  body  of  Christians  in  England,  they 
have  at  length  succeeded  in  obtaining  orders  from  the 
home  government  to  abolish  the  pilgrim  tax  and  all 
connection  with  heathen  temples.  So  reluctantly, 
however,  have  these  orders  been  obeyed  by  some  of 
those  in  authority  in  India,  that,  although  they  have 
been  reiterated  from  time  to  time,  a  complete  separation 
between  the  government  and  idolatry  has  scarcely  yet 
been  effected.  The  government  also  has  built  and  en- 
dowed Hindu  and  Mohammedan  colleges,  where  the 
Shasters  and  the  Quran  are  taught ;  while,  on  the  other 
hand,  the  English  schools,  established  by  the  same  au- 
thority, are  guarded  most  sedulously  from  all  Christian 


GOVERNMENT    INTERFERENCE.  51 


influence.  The  Bible  is  specially  excluded;  and  when 
a  grant  of  the  publications  of  the  London  Religious 
Tract  Society  was  made,  a  few  years  ago,  to  be  placed 
on  the  shelves  of  the  school  libraries,  it  was  promptly 
and  positively  rejected.  While  the  principle  of  non- 
interference with  the  religion  of  the  natives,  on  the 
part  of  the  government,  that  is,  of  not  imposing  Chris- 
tianity upon  them,  or  compelling  them  to  study  the 
Scriptures  in  the  public  schools,  appears  to  be  the  right 
one,  at  the  same  time  we  think,  that  to  afford  such  of 
them  as  might  desire  it,  an  opportunity  of  studying  the 
grand  principles  of  that  holy  religion,  which  has  so 
largely  contributed  to  enlighten  and  elevate  Christian 
nations,  is  not  at  all  inconsistent  with  such  a  principle. 
Besides,  the  plan  of  non-interference  with  the  religious 
opinions  of  the  people,  in  its  fullest  sense,  could  not 
be  carried  out  in  India.  The  suttee,  or  burning  of 
Hindu  widows ;  the  offering  of  children  to  the  river 
Ganges,  and  the  Ghdt  murders  of  the  aged  and  dying, 
all  part  and  parcel  of  the  Hindu  religion,  and  sacredly 
enjoined  in  the  Shasters,  coming  under  the  cognizance 
of  the  civil  law,  were  some  years  ago  made  criminal 
offences  by  the  celebrated  Lord  William  Bentinck,  whose 
honoured  name  will  go  down  to  posterity  as  a  friend 
to  humanity  and  religion.  Even  with  all  the  care  now 
used  to  exclude  religion  from  the  government  schools, 
it  -will  be  found  impossible  to  do  so,  as  English  books 
of  prose  and  poetry  and  science,  have  a  leaven  of  Chris- 
tianity, which  will  gradually  work  its  way  into  the  cor- 
rupt mass  of  Hindu  mind,  and  finally  undermine  the 
false  foundation  and  principles  of  their  religious  books, 
in  which  gross  errors,  in  science  as  well  as  religion,  aro 


52  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


intermingled.  To  counteract  the  evil  tendency  of  edu- 
cation without  religion,  it  becomes  the  duty  of  Chris- 
tian men  to  establish  and  support  a  mission  at  the  very 
door  of  every  government  school  and  college,  from 
"which  the  pure  waters  of  the  sanctuary  may  issue 
forth  to  cleanse  away  the  scum  of  error  and  infidelity, 
that  such  a  course  of  instruction  is  likely  to  throw  up 
to  the  surface  of  the  Hindu  mind.  Let  Christians 
avail  themselves  of  present  advantages,  when  a  whole 
nation  is  about  to  awake  after  a  sleep  of  ages,  and 
turn  its  inquiries  in  the  right  direction.  Let  them 
remember,  that  to  neglect  the  present  favourable  op- 
portunity of  missionary  effort  in  India,  may  be  to 
throw  back  its  evangelization  for  centuries.  What  the 
church  intends  to  do,  she  must  do  quickly,  otherwise 
Satan  may  hinder  her,  and  render  future  attempts  to 
overthrow  his  ancient  empire  in  Hindustan  abortive. 
As  light  must  necessarily  break  into  these  ancient  domin- 
ions of  heathenism,  he  has  only  to  give  the  people  infi- 
delity for  idolatry,  and  then  the  last  error  will  be  worse 
than  the  first.  Only  let  Christians,  at  once,  do  their 
duty  faithfully  in  this  all-important  cause.  Let  them 
send  to  India  living  teachers,  who,  without  any  inter- 
ference from  government,  may  unfold  the  whole  Chris- 
tian scheme  as  it  is  designed  for  the  human  family ; 
and,  through  the  blessing  and  grace  of  Him,  who  has 
commanded  us  to  disciple  all  nations,  and  who  has  pro- 
mised his  presence  and  aid,  in  the  discharge  of  the 
arduous  work,  soon,  we  may  hope,  that  Hindustan 
will  be  given  to  him  for  his  possession,  and  become  a 
bright  jewel  in  his  mediatorial  crown. 


CHARACTER    OF    HINDUS.  53 


CHAPTER  III. 

Character  of  the  Hindus — Their  appearance  and  dress — Moral 
condition — Degradation  of  the  female  sex — Early  marriages — 
Confinement  in  Zenanas — Widowhood — Drudgery  of  the  poor 
for  a  scanty  subsistence — Taste  in  dress — Society  antisocial — 
Patriarchal  system  in  families — Marriage  ceremonies — Popula- 
tion collected  into  cities  and  villages — Construction  of  dwell- 
ings— Want  of  taste  and  comfort  in  their  apartments — Food — 
Mode  of  eating  and  drinking — Confidence  in  charms — Medical 
practice — Holidays  numerous — The  Holi  and  Doorgapuja — Hor- 
rors of  the  swinging  festival — Goddess  Kali — Scenes  at  a  temple 
of  Jagatnuth— Mela  at  Hardwar — Pilgrimages — Our  duty  to 
the  heathen. 

As  it  is  natural  that  those  who  take  a  deep  interest 
in  the  spread  of  the  gospel  among  the  people  of  Hin- 
dustan should  wish  to  possess  distinct  and  accurate 
information  respecting  the  objects  of  their  benevolent 
regard — their  manners,  customs,  domestic  and  social 
condition,  &c. ;  and  as  such  information  ought  to  be 
possessed  by  all  who  would  intelligently  and  zealously 
engage  in  India's  evangelization,  we  shall  now  endea- 
vour to  communicate  such  information  on  these  sub- 
jects as  a  residence  among  the  Hindus  for  nearly 
eleven  years  has  enabled  us  to  acquire.  It  may  be 
observed,  however,  that  the  remarks  made  will  have 
reference  chiefly  to  Northern  India,  which  has  been 
the  scene  of  our  missionary  labours,  and  which,  in 
many  particulars,   differs   from   Southern    India  and 

Bengal. 

G* 


54  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


The  people  of  India,  in  general,  are  a  mild  and 
gentle  race,  outwardly  polite  in  their  manners,  and 
exceedingly  simple  in  all  their  habits.  Having  few 
or  no  artificial  wants,  with  little  labour  they  easily  ac- 
quire a  competency,  and  have  ample  leisure  to  indulge 
in  idleness,  and  in  smoking  the  hookah,  or  in  chewing 
beetle-nut,  which  they  esteem  almost  as  the  sum  of 
human  happiness.  When  it  is  considered  that  they 
are  an  ignorant  and  most  superstitious  people,  led 
away  in  the  degrading  service  of  dumb  idols,  and  that 
their  imaginations  are  filled  with  religious  ideas,  not 
only  absurd  in  themselves,  but  of  the  worst  moral  ten- 
dency, and  that  their  hearts  and  consciences  are 
awfully  depraved  and  and  defiled,  the  surprise  is,  that 
their  external  conduct  among  themselves  and  toward 
foreigners  has  so  much  in  it  that  is  praiseworthy  and 
amiable.  Their  stores  of  patience  seem  almost  inex- 
haustible ;  and  injuries  they  usually  bear  at  the  time 
with  but  little  exhibition  of  temper,  yet  they  will  seek 
an  opportunity  to  resent  such  treatment,  and  do  so  in 
a  way  which  evinces  much  enmity  and  bitterness. 

In  Bengal  the  men  are  of  a  slender  frame,  and  very 
effeminate  in  their  appearance,  but  up  the  country 
they  are  more  strong  and  masculine,  and  the  Sikhs 
may  be  said  to  be  an  able-bodied  race  of  men.  In 
colour  they  vary  from  that  of  the  darkest  African  to 
the  sallow  Spaniard  or  Italian ;  and  it  is  somewhat  re- 
markable that  the  Brahmins,  and  higher  castes,  are 
generally  the  fairest,  so  that  a  very  dark  skin  is  not 
an  object  of  fancy  even  in  India.  In  the  hot  season, 
the  labouring  classes  wear  nothing  but  a  small  cloth 
around  the  loins ;  and  some  of  them  who  are  too  poor 


DRESS   AND    MANNERS.  55 


to  afford  even  that,  have  a  mere  patch  which  passes 
from  a  string,  fastened  around  the  waist,  behind,  and 
is  tucked  into  the  same  before,  being  scarcely  sufficient 
for  the  purpose  of  decency.  In  addition  to  a  large 
cloth  fastened  around  the  loins,  the  middling  classes 
wear  another  long  cloth  which  passes  around  the  body 
and  over  the  shoulder,  leaving  the  arms  quite  naked 
and  at  liberty.  The  more  respectable  in  society  wear 
loose  drawers  of  white  muslin,  and  a  garment  of  the 
same,  which  fits  the  body  neatly,  and  is  fastened  around 
the  waist  by  a  Tcamarband  or  girdle  of  several  folds. 
The  heads  of  all  are  enveloped  by  a  narrow  cloth  of 
white  or  pink  [colour,  from  five  to  ten  or  even  twenty 
yards  in  length,  according  to  the  rank  of  individuals. 
Many  shave  the  hair  entirely  off  their  heads;  others 
leave  a  small  tuft  on  the  crown.  In  some  parts  of  the 
country,  the  men  wear  their  hair  long,  and  put  up  be- 
hind like  the  females  in  other  lands.  The  Hindus 
usually  allow  the  hair  to  remain  on  the  upper  lip,  and 
the  Mohammedans  permit  it  to  grow  under  the  chin 
like  the  Jews.  In  manners  they  are  graceful  and  mo- 
dest, with  ample  self-possession  when  in  the  presence 
of  their  superiors.  The  mistakes  made  by  foreigners 
in  their  language,  when  lately  arrived  in  the  country, 
which  are  often  ridiculous  enough,  are  listened  to  with 
faces  as  grave  as  possible.  But  although  they  have 
their  feelings  so  perfectly  under  command,  they  are 
quick  observers  of  others,  and  can  form  a  pretty  accu- 
rate opinion  regarding  them.  The  fact  is,  they  are 
naturally  possessed  of  acute  minds,  which,  from  early 
life,  are  actively  employed  in  forming  plans  and  schemes 
to  promote  their  own  interests.     There  is  probably  no 


56  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


people  under  the  sun,  who,  without  any  foundation,  could 
form  a  story  entirely  their  own,  and  which,  at  the  same 
time,  would  bear  so  much  of  the  semblance  of  truth  as 
the  Hindus ;  and  that  man  among  them  who  can  acquit 
himself  in  the  most  plausible  manner  in  this  respect, 
is  looked  up  to  by  his  fellows,  if  not  with  esteem,  yet 
with  emulation,  and  a  strong  desire  to  excel  him  in  this 
particular  if  possible.  Hence  the  great  difficulty  of 
understanding  the  people  by  those  who  have  not  mingled 
much  among  them,  and  of  administering  justice  aright 
by  those  who  are  placed  in  authority.  For  the  veriest 
trifle,  men  may  be  found  who,  in  a  court  of  law,  will 
swear  just  any  thing  at  all  to  further  the  object  of  their 
employers ;  and  then  the  story  they  will  tell  will  have 
such  a  connection  in  all  its  parts,  and  such  an  air  of 
truth  about  it,  as  to  leave  the  judge  on  the  bench,  at 
times,  perfectly  in  doubt  as  to  where  the  truth  lies, 
since  the  evidence  on  the  other  side  may  be  equally 
clear  and  satisfactory !  But  why  should  we  expect  a 
better  state  of  things  among  those  who  are  not  influ- 
enced at  all  by  Bible  principles;  who  have  but  little 
idea  of  moral  responsibility  or  of  a  future  judgment, 
and  whose  very  religious  books  set  before  them  numer- 
ous examples  of  deceit,  falsehood,  and  impurity  in  the 
lives  of  their  Avatars  or  incarnate  gods. 

The  females  in  Hindustan,  as  in  most  heathen  coun- 
tries, are  in  a  most  degraded  and  deplorable  condition. 
The  only  period  when  those,  born  in  respectable  so- 
ciety, seem  to  enjoy  life,  or  are  permitted  to  breathe 
the  pure  air  of  heaven,  is  during  infancy  or  childhood. 
At  the  early  age  of  four  or  five  years,  arrangements 
are  made  for  their  espousals,  and  afterward  they  are 


ZEXANAS — "WIDOWHOOD.  57 


taken  in  special  charge  by  the  women  of  the  zenana, 
and  confined  within  its  walls  as  prisoners  for  life.  At 
the  age  of  ten  or  eleven,  the  marriage  ceremonies  are 
concluded,  and  then  the  bride  is  taken  home  by  the 
bridegroom,  and  placed  in  the  female  apartments  of 
his  father's  household.  From  that  day,  it  may  be  said, 
her  free  agency  ends,  and  a  state  of  absolute  slavery 
commences.  Henceforth,  during  the  life  of  the  man, 
whom  to  that  day  she  never  saw,  she  is  to  consider  her- 
self as  his  servant  and  inferior.  Her  time,  if  in  re- 
spectable circumstances,  and  to  such  only  we  now  refer, 
is  spent  in  gossip  and  idleness.  Unlike  the  virtuous 
woman  described  by  Solomon,  her  hands  neither  take 
hold  of  the  needle,  the  spindle,  or  the  distaff.  Accord- 
ing to  the  absurd  ideas  of  modesty  that  prevail,  she 
must  never  look  upon  the  face  of  any  man  but  her  own 
husband,  not  even  upon  the  face  of  one  of  his  own 
brothers  unless  he  be  younger  than  her  husband,  so 
that  should  she  have  occasion  to  go  abroad,  she  has  to 
cover  her  head  with  a  sheet,  or  is  conveyed  in  a  carriage 
surrounded  by  curtains  to  avoid  the  public  gaze.  Her 
religion,  as  well  as  public  opinion,  forbid  her  to  learn 
to  read,  or  to  cultivate  her  mind  by  the  acquisition  of 
knowledge.  After  the  death  of  her  husband,  as  the 
government  will  not  now  allow  her  to  burn  herself,  she 
can  by  no  means  think  of  a  second  marriage ;  and  as 
she  is  then,  in  many  cases,  left  dependent  on  others,  it 
but  too  often  happens  that  her  situation  is  miserable, 
and  she  is  driven  to  lead  a  dissolute  life  to  obtain  a  live- 
lihood. It  is  probable  there  never  Avas  a  case  known 
of  a  woman  in  India  being  married  a  second  time. 
This  system  of  perpetual  widowhood,  however,  and  its 


58  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


attendant  evils,  is  beginning  to  receive  the  attention 
of  some  of  the  educated  native  gentlemen  in  Calcutta ; 
and  one  of  them,  who  has  attentively  marked  the  evils 
connected  with  such  a  system,  and  whose  mind  has 
been  liberalized  by  education,  offered  a  large  reward, 
some  years  ago,  to  any  man  who  would  marry  a  widow, 
but  to  this  day  the  offer  has  not  been  accepted  by  any 
one !  Women  of  the  poorer  classes,  who  are  compelled 
to  work  hard  for  the  support  of  their  families,  and  who, 
of  course,  have  to  mingle  in  public  society,  seem  to  be 
much  more  cheerful  and  happy.  They  are  more  on 
an  equality  with  their  husbands,  and  they  can  go  abroad 
without  covering  their  faces,  or  concealing  themselves 
from  the  eyes  of  strangers.  Still  their  situation  is 
far  from  being  comfortable.  Their  occupation  as  qidis, 
in  carrying  burdens  upon  their  heads,  and  labouring  in 
the  fields,  is  laborious,  their  fare  is  exceedingly  scanty, 
and  their  wages,  (not  more  than  three  cents  a  day,  on 
which  they  support  themselves  and  their  families,)  are  so 
low,  as  scarcely  to  afford  a  bare  subsistence. 

The  taste  displayed  by  the  females  of  India  in  orna- 
ments and  articles  of  dress,  is  rather  amusing.  Some- 
times all  the  toes  are  covered  with  massive  rings,  which 
make  it  difficult  to  walk.  The  ancles  are  loaded  with 
a  pair  of  bangles,  several  pounds  in  weight,  filled  with 
small  bells,  like  sleigh  bells  in  America,  which  tinkle 
as  they  go.  The  arms,  almost  from  the  wrist  to  the 
elbow,  are  covered  with  bracelets  or  round  rings,  some- 
times of  solid  silver,  but  more  generally  of  baser  metal, 
of  glass  or  of  gumlac  of  various  colours.  The  ear- 
rings are  numerous,  and  instead  of  being  attached  to 
the  lower,  are  fastened  to  the  upper  margin  of  the  ear. 


DOMESTIC    INSTITUTIONS.  59 


The  nose  jewel  is  a  large  ring  of  gold,  about  two  inches 
in  diameter,  fastened  to  one  side  of  the  nose,  and  hang- 
ing over  the  mouth,  with  a  small  pearl,  or  its  imitation, 
on  the  lower  edge.  This  latter  is  worn  only  by  women 
who  have  husbands.  We  have  seen  the  coarse  cotton 
cloth,  that  is  worn  over  the  head  and  round  the 
shoulders  of  the  common  or  lower  classes,  covered  all 
over  with  small  circular  pieces  of  looking-glass,  set  in 
by  needlework.  Of  course,  to  wash  such  an  article 
would  be  impossible,  and  when  worn  for  a  year  or  so, 
its  colour  and  filth  may  be  imagined  but  not  described. 
Indeed,  the  lower  order  of  females  seldom  think  of 
washing  their  clothes,  but  wear  them  till  they  drop 
off  in  tatters  as  the  result  of  such  filthy  habits.  The 
ignorant  as  well  as  the  degraded  condition  of  females 
in  India,  might  here  be  dwelt  upon,  and  the  influence 
which  such  mothers  exert  in  society,  and  the  obstacles 
that  are  thus  presented  to  the  spread  of  the  gospel, 
might  be  shown,  but  these  subjects  will  come  up  more 
naturally  when  we  come  to  notice  the  difficulties  of  the 
missionary  work. 

Families  in  India  are  peculiarly  constituted,  and  so- 
ciety is  in  general  antisocial,  as  it  regards  the  conduct 
of  tribes  and  castes  toward  each  other.  It  would  seem 
as  if  but  little  alteration  had  taken  place  in  Eastern 
countries,  in  regard  to  the  form  of  the  domestic  insti- 
tution for  thousands  of  years  past.  The  patriarchal 
system  of  uniting  all  under  the  venerable  head  from 
which  they  sprung,  as  one  family,  prevails  in  Hindustan 
at  the  present  time,  just  as  in  the  days  of  Abraham ; 
and  that  head  sways  complete  authority  over  all  his 
children  and    children's  children,  however   numerous 


60  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


they  may  be.  No  man  in  India  usually  becomes  the 
head  of  his  own  family  if  his  immediate  ancestor  be 
still  alive.  He  and  his  wife  remain  under  the  roof  of 
his  parent,  and  in  connection  with  all  the  branches  of 
the  family,  and  all  their  earnings  are  placed  in  a  com- 
mon stock,  until  it  may,  in  turn,  become  his  lot  to  as- 
sume the  guardianship  over  his  own  posterity.  It  will 
easily  be  perceived,  that  this  system  must  often  be  pro- 
ductive of  great  evils  and  discontent  especially  among 
a  people  but  partially  civilized,  and  where  polygamy 
is  so  common.  Of  this  the  female  apartment  of  Indian 
households  particularly  could  bear  witness.  Yet  so 
strong  is  the  power  of  custom,  this  state  of  family 
thraldom  goes  on ;  and,  whatever  quarrelling  and  do- 
mestic broils  it  may  produce,  all  must  live  together,  or 
incur  lasting  disgrace  by  a  separation.  Another  serious 
evil  which  arises  from  this  state  of  things,  and  which 
greatly  retards  the  progress  of  the  gospel,  is  this,  that 
living  in  masses,  and  having  common  interests,  men,  in 
a  great  degree,  lose  their  independence  of  thought  and 
action,  so  that  for  any  man  to  profess  a  different  faith, 
or  to  practice  another  code  of  morals  from  that  of  his 
relations,  with  whom  he  is  so  closely  associated  and 
identified,  is  almost  impossible.  To  do  so,  he  must 
come  out  and  be  separate  from  his  nearest  and  dearest 
friends,  lose  any  share  he  may  have  had  in  the  patri- 
monial inheritance,  and,  as  a  follower  of  Christ,  take 
up  a  cross,  at  which,  we  fear,  many  professors  in  Chris- 
tian lands,  would  stumble  and  turn  aside  to  what  might 
be  more  agreeable  to  flesh  and  blood. 

The  ceremonies  of  marriage  among  the  Hindus  are 
very  numerous  and  imposing,  and  attended  with  a  great 


MARRIAGE    CEREMONIES.  61 


waste  of  time  and  money,  which  is  often  ruinous  to 
families.  And  although  the  burden  of  expense,  on 
such  occasions,  is  generally  severely  felt,  for  the  Hindus 
are  naturally  most  penurious,  and  especially  in  all 
matters  that  are  of  real  utility,  and  in  which  their  own 
name  and  honour  are  not  in  some  way  or  other  con- 
nected, yet  rather  than  incur  the  odium  of  singularity, 
or  oppose  the  current  practice,  all  follow  on  in  the 
beaten  tract,  each  one  trying  to  gain  a  name  among 
his  acquaintances  for  a  liberality  and  resources  which 
he  does  not  possess.  A  man's  wealth  and  respectability 
are  estimated,  in  the  view  of  the  community,  by  the 
expenses  he  incurs  at  the  marriage  of  a  son  or  daugh- 
ter, and  hence  the  poor  as  well  as  the  rich  act  under 
the  influence  which  this  opinion  exerts.  We  have 
known  men  whose  whole  monthly  earnings,  on  which 
they  and  their  families  were  supported,  did  not  amount 
to  two  dollars,  to  expend  fifty  or  one  hundred  dollars  in 
the  marriage  of  one  of  their  children;  and  this,  too, 
not  in  providing  such  things  as  they  might  require  for 
housekeeping,  and  as  would  be  of  lasting  use  to  the 
married  pair,  but  in  feasting  their  friends  and  the 
public,  and  in  making  shows  and  fireworks  which  could 
hardly  afford  amusement  to  children  in  other  lands. 
And  what  adds  to  the  folly  of  all  this  is,  that  the 
money  thus  expended  has  generally  to  be  borrowed  at 
an  interest  of  twenty  or  twenty-four  per  cent.,  the  pay- 
ment of  which  keeps  them  poorer  still,  and  in  the  power 
of  their  creditors  all  their  days.  From  this  arises  an- 
other serious  difficulty  to  the  spread  of  the  gospel,  as 
the  moment  such  men  would  think  of  forsaking  the  re- 


62  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


ligion  of  their  fathers,  and  of  professing  Christianity, 
they  would  render  themselves  liable  to  prosecution. 

When  a  Hindu  wishes  to  make  arrangements  for 
the  marriage  of  his  son,  he  sends  forth  some  faithful 
Eliezer,  usually  the  family  barber,  to  seek  a  wife  from 
among  those  of  his  own  caste  and  standing  in  society. 
Previously  to  this,  however,  the  astrologers  are  con- 
sulted, and  they,  after  examining  the  child's  horoscope, 
intimate  the  season  most  proper  for  commencing  these 
measures,  as  well  as  the  particular  circumstances  to  be 
observed  in  carrying  them  forward.  To  all  these 
auguries  and  injunctions  of  the  Brahmins,  there  is  a 
strict  regard  paid  by  the  deluded  people,  as,  in  their 
opinion,  the  slightest  deviation  from  them  might  be 
attended  by  the  most  disastrous  consequences.  When 
all  preliminaries  are  settled  to  the  satisfaction  of  the 
parties  concerned,  and  the  auspicious  day  fixed  upon 
for  the  ceremony  arrives,  friends  on  all  sides,  to  the 
utmost  bounds  of  consanguinity  or  acquaintance,  in- 
deed, the  more  of  the  same  caste  the  better,  assemble 
at  the  house  of  the  infant  bride,  carrying  money  in 
their  hands,  ostensibly  as  presents,  but  actually  with 
the  design  of  aiding  in  the  feast,  which  is  usually  on 
an  extensive  scale,  and  lasts  for  several  days,  and  some- 
times for  weeks.  During  this  period  the  guests,  being 
entirely  under  the  control  of  their  host,  give  up  all 
their  usual  employments,  and  spend  the  time  in  the 
ceremonies  and  processions,  the  dances  and  feasts  and 
follies  which  so  abundantly  accompany  the  occasion. 
The  chief  article  consumed  at  these  feasts  is  sweet- 
meats, in  all  the  different  forms  which  may  be  found 
at  the  shop  of  an  Indian  confectioner,  and  the  quantity 


HINDtf   LIBERALITY.  63 


that  so  great  a  number  of  persons  will  consume  at  such 
a  time  is  quite  incredible.  In  short,  the  amount  of 
time  and  money  spent  is  very  great,  and  the  result,  in 
mental  dissipation,  and  moral  influence  in  the  commu- 
nity, is  injurious  to  all  and  ruinous  to  many ;  and  until 
the  influence  of  Christianity,  widely  diffused  among 
them,  removes  the  semi-barbarous  usages,  and  directs 
the  benevolence  and  the  feelings  of  the  community  into 
a  better  and  purer  channel,  efforts  for  their  evangeli- 
zation must  continue  to  meet  with  a  serious  obstacle 
from  this  single  heathenish  custom,  to  say  nothing  of 
the  many  others  that  might  be  named  as  existing  among 
the  Hindus.  It  is  in  marriage  and  idolatrous  festivals 
that  their  false  and  misapplied  liberality  is  particularly 
displayed,  and  all,  as  we  have  already  stated,  is  done 
merely  for  a  name.  Men  of  wealth,  on  such  occasions, 
have  been  known  to  spend,  at  one  time,  fifty  or  a  hun- 
dred thousand  dollars !  It  has  been  estimated  that  in 
Calcutta  alone,  during  the  Durga  festival,  about  two 
millions  of  dollars  are  expended  annually,  in  honour 
of  a  goddess  with  ten  arms,  filled  with  weapons  for  the 
destruction  of  her  enemies !  Will  not  such  liberality, 
by  a  single  city,  during  one  of  the  many  festivals  an- 
nually held  in  support  of  idolatry,  put  Christianity  to 
the  blush  ?  Will  it  not  put  to  shame  many  a  Christian, 
to  whom  God  has  given  the  means,  and  motives  infi- 
nitely superior  to  any  which  actuate  the  heathen,  who 
has  not  yet  the  heart  to  aid  in  the  work  of  true  bene- 
volence, when  Christ  and  his  cause  so  loudly  demand 
their  assistance  and  co-operation. 

The  inhabitants  of  India  are  all  collected  into  cities 
and  villages.     There  is  scarcely  any  such  thing  as  a 


64  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


farmer  residing  in  a  separate  dwelling  on  the  centre 
of  his  own  estate.  The  reason  of  this  is,  that  under 
former  governments,  predatory  bands,  who  lived  by 
plundering  the  weak  and  defenceless,  were  very  com- 
mon in  the  country,  and  the  inhabitants  were  compelled 
to  unite  in  sufficient  numbers  to  repel  any  attack  that 
might  be  made  upon  them  from  such  quarters.  An- 
other reason  of  this  would  arise  from  the  castes  into 
which  society  is  divided,  and  which  render  the  prox- 
imity of  men  of  one  employment  or  profession,  so 
essential  to  the  comfort  of  others,  who  on  no  account 
may  meddle  with  that  profession.  And  a  third  reason 
may  be,  that  as  a  good  well,  from  which  pure  water  may 
be  obtained,  cannot  be  built  in  that  country  at  a  small 
expense,  it  was  necessary  for  a  number  of  people  to 
unite  in  the  undertaking,  and,  of  course,  in  sharing 
its  advantages.  These  villages  are  generally  a  few 
miles  apart,  and  each  is  governed  by  a  head  man, 
called  the  Jamaatdar,  who  is  often  the  Zamindar,  or 
owner  of  the  ground  on  which  it  is  built.  Scarcely 
any  attention  whatever  is  paid  to  order  in  the  erection 
of  the  dwellings,  and  hence  the  streets  usually  are 
merely  narrow  winding  passages,  to  admit  of  a  single 
person  to  find  his  way  to  what  appears  to  be  the  abodes 
of  poverty  and  wretchedness.  The  walls  of  these  low 
huts  are  made  of  mud,  and  the  roof  is  covered  with 
grass ;  and  sometimes  the  whole  dwelling  consists  of 
grass  and  iambus  alone.  In  the  suburbs  of  large 
towns,  the  houses  of  the  poor  are  of  the  same  descrip- 
tion, but  those  belonging  to  the  more  respectable 
classes  are  usually  of  brick,  with  flat  roofs,  often 
covered  with  clay,  and  of  large  dimensions,  surround- 


HIXDU    HOUSES.  65 


ing  a  court-yard  in  the  centre.     In  these,  as  we  have 
already  mentioned,  there  are  apartments  for  the  males 
and  females  separate,  and  sufficient  to  contain  all  the 
branches   of  a  numerous  posterity.     Some  of  these 
buildings  have  been  erected  at  a  great  expense,  but 
with  no  reference  whatever  to  what  we  should   call 
comfort.     They  seldom  have  glazed  windows,  and  but 
little  arrangement  for  the  admission  of  air  or  light. 
In  many  respects  they  are  more  like  the  common  jails 
of  a  former  age,  than  the  abodes  of  men  of  wealth  and 
respectability.     But  the  dark  walls  and  gloomy  cells 
of  the  building  are  not  more  comfortless  than  the  in- 
ternal appearance  and  arrangements.     The  entrance 
to  such  mansions  is  often  a  dirty  passage  amidst  the 
stalls  of  cows  and  buffaloes.     The  apartments  are  not 
furnished,  as  -with  us,  with  chairs  and  tables,  and  all  that 
contributes  to  comfort  and  elegance.     In  general,  little 
is  to  be  seen  but  empty  walls,  except  a  piece  of  cotton 
carpet,  or  a  rug  or  rude  bedstead.     The  reason  of  this 
neglect  is,  that  the  interior  of  the  dwelling  is  but  little 
used.     There  is  no  such  thing  as  the  enjoyment  of  a 
social  meal  with  the   assembled  family,  as  in   other 
lands,  nor  the  still  greater  luxury  of  rational  and  im- 
proving conversation  in  the  evenings  or  during  leisure 
hours.     As  we  have  before  stated,  the  females  live  by 
themselves,  in  confined  apartments,  or  in  some  corner 
on  the  top  of  the  building,  when  they  wish  to  breathe 
a  little  air  freely.     The  males  sit  and  eat  in  the  open 
verandahs  facing  on  the  inner  court,  and  to  them  only 
there  is  access  by  strangers,  after  permission  to  enter 
has  been  obtained. 

The  food  of  the  rich  is  almost  as  simple  as  that  of 


o* 


66  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


the  poor.  It  consists  of  a  single  dish  of  bread  and 
pulse  or  vegetables,  or  rice  and  curry.  These  dishes 
are  richly  prepared  with  ghi,  or  liquid  butter,  and 
seasoned  with  pepper  and  spices.  They  partake  of 
but  two  meals  in  the  day, — the  first  about  noon  and 
the  other  in  the  evening.  The  method,  so  strongly 
urged  of  late  by  some  of  our  own  physicians  to  pro- 
mote digestion,  that  is,  to  use  no  liquid  of  any  kind 
until  the  substantial  part  of  the  food  has  been  partaken 
of,  has  all  along  been  practised  by  the  Hindus,  and  I 
am  convinced  that  the  practice  greatly  contributes  to 
their  health.  Dyspepsia  is  a  disease  but  little  known 
in  India.  Sometimes  the  male  part  of  the  family,  who 
always  eat  first,  surround  a  common  dish,  all  seated  on 
the  ground,  and  partake  of  the  food  with  their  hands. 
Thus  chairs,  and  tables,  and  spoons,  and  knives  and 
forks,  &c,  which  we  consider  so  essential  to  comfort 
and  decency,  are  all  dispensed  with.  Sometimes  a 
portion  is  distributed  to  each  separately  on  a  brass 
plate.  This  is  the  only  kind  of  ware  used  by  the 
higher  castes,  as  it  can  be  cleaned  and  purified  by 
earth  and  water,  before  it  is  used;  but  every  vessel  of 
earthenware,  when  once  used,  is  considered  by  such 
persons  to  be  defiled,  and  is  then  broken  or  thrown 
away.  In  drinking,  a  native  will  never  put  the  edge 
of  the  vessel  to  his  mouth.  He  pours  it  from  a  dis- 
tance into  the  palm  of  his  hand,  and  from  thence  it 
flows  into  the  mouth  as  living  water,  and  in  his  esti- 
mation, it  is  thus  freed  of  any  impurities  it  formerly 
possessed. 

Like  the  people  of  all  semi-civilized  nations,  the 
Hindus  put  much  confidence  in  charms  and  omens,  and 


CHARMS.  67 


are  constantly  in  dread  of  some  evil  or  other  befalling 
them  through  the  agency  of  demons.  Hence,  from 
infancy,  the  child  wears  charms  around  the  neck  to 
guard  it  against  the  influence  of  malicious  spirits. 
The  cow  and  other  domestic  animals  may  be  seen  with 
the  same  symbols  of  safety,  and  in  these  the  greatest 
confidence  is  placed  by  the  deluded  people.  Not  a 
journey  can  be  commenced,  or  any  thing  special  under- 
taken, without  consulting  the  usual  auguries,  and  ob- 
serving certain  omens  which  indicate  favourable  results. 
Should  any  thing,  considered  either  unlucky  or  unfa- 
vourable, come  before  an  individual  when  about  to 
proceed  in  some  enterprise,  the  undertaking  would  be 
relinquished  immediately,  not  only  as  likely  to  prove 
abortive,  but  highly  dangerous.  The  religion  of  the 
people  is  a  religion  of  fear,  and  in  so  far  as  it  affects 
them  at  all,  it  may  be  said  to  produce  little  else  than 
slavish  fear.  In  times  of  sickness  or  pestilence,  instead 
of  applying  the  remedies  calculated  to  afford  relief, 
they  usually  betake  themselves  to  charms  and  incan- 
tations. During  the  prevalence  of  cholera,  we  have 
seen  the  whole  community  attempting  to  arrest  the 
disease,  and  to  drive  it  from  their  midst,  by  making  a 
kind  of  ceremonial  transfer  of  it  to  a  goat,  and  then 
leading  the  aninmal  to  a  distance  from  the  city,  amidst 
the  shouts  of  thousands. 

There  is  a  great  sacrifice  of  human  life  in  India,  in 
consequence  of  the  absurd  mode  of  medical  treatment 
pursued  by  the  native  hakims.  Let  the  case  be  what 
it  may,  they  always  require  three  days  to  find  out  the 
diagnosis  of  the  disease ;  and  in  many  cases,  by  that 
time,  it  has  run  to  such  a  height  as  to  defy  any  reme- 


68  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


dies  they  may  afterward  employ.  The  remedies  pre- 
scribed, however,  are  often  most  inappropriate,  and 
instead  of  alleviating  only  aggravate  the  complaint, 
and  hasten  it  on  to  a  fatal  termination.  It  is  but  just, 
however,  to  say,  that  we  have  known  some  native  doc- 
tors possessed  of  much  skill  in  their  own  way,  and 
well  acquainted  with  their  own  Materia  Medica,  as 
well  as  its  application  in  the  removal  of  many  dis- 
eases. There  are  also  at  present  a  great  and  grow- 
ing number  of  natives  who  have  graduated  in  the 
Medical  College  in  Calcutta,  and  are  well  acquainted 
with  the  English  practice.  These  have  been  appointed 
as  assistants  to  the  surgeons  at  the  several  civil  and 
military  stations  through  the  land,  and  are  likely  to 
become  useful  men  in  the  community.  They  are  ex- 
perimentally acquainted  with  the  advantages  of  Eng- 
lish science  and  improvements,  and  will  doubtless  be 
disposed,  as  they  have  opportunity,  to  recommend  the 
same  to  their  ignorant  and  benighted  countrymen. 

The  time  spent  by  the  Hindus  in  the  observance  of 
their  holidays  and  festivals  is  almost  incredible,  and 
far  beyond  the  seventh  part  appropriated  by  the 
Creator  as  the  Christian  Sabbath.  This  day  of  sacred 
rest  is  not,  of  course,  recognised  by  the  people,  and 
hence  all  kinds  of  business,  such  as  buying  and  selling 
and  farming,  &c,  are  carried  on  as  on  any  other  day 
of  the  week.  From  seven  to  ten  days  and  upward 
are  occupied  in  succession  by  several  of  these  festivals, 
and  at  some  of  them,  as  the  Holi  and  the  Durgapuja, 
the  dissipation  and  conduct  of  the  community  become 
perfectly  ridiculous  and  absurd.  During  the  period 
of  the  Holi,  there  is  an  attempt  made  to  imitate  the 


,|  v      ■   -.0*LANa    >'■ 


HOOK     SWINGING. 


Page  G9. 


HINDU   FESTIVALS. 


69 


freaks  and  follies  of  Krishna,  one  of  their  incarnate 
gods.     Near  the  commencement  of  these  holidays,  the 
people  cast  upon  each  other  large  quantities  of  pink 
and  yellow  dyes,  so  as  sometimes  completely  to  satu- 
rate the  clothes  and  skin,  and,  in  this  manner,  they  go 
about  till  the  end  of  the  festival,  presenting  appear- 
ances both  frightful  and  disgusting.     The  conduct  of 
some  of  the  Hindu  sects  at  the  conclusion  of  these  fes- 
tivals is  too  obscene  to  be  described.     They  smoke  in- 
toxicating drugs,  become  frantic  by  excitement,  and 
then  indulge  in  the  will  of  the  gentiles,  as  mentioned 
in   the    epistle   of  Peter,— "in   lasciviousness,   lusts, 
revellings,   banquetings,   and   abominable  idolatries." 
The  impressions  made  upon  our  mind  by  witnessing 
the  festivals  of  the   Carak  Puja  and  of  Jagatnath, 
shortly  after  our  arrival  in  Calcutta,  can  never  be  ef- 
faced.    At  the  former,  or  swinging  worship,  as  the 
word  means,  we  stood  by  during  the  greater  part  of  an 
afternoon,  in  company  with  other  missionary  brethren, 
that  we  might  see  for  ourselves  some  of  the  "  horrors 
of  heathenism,"  as  they  are  publicly  exhibited  in  the 
metropolis  of  British  India.     On  the  morning  of  the 
day  on  which  these  bloody  and  cruel  rites  are  to  be 
performed,  large  poles  are  placed  in  the  ground,  at  the 
corners  of  the  streets  and  public  thoroughfares,  not 
unlike  the  liberty  poles  in  the  United  States.     These 
poles  are  about  thirty  feet  in  height,  and  on  the  top 
of  each  there  is  another,  about  the  same  in  length, 
placed  horizontally,  and  on  which  it  moves  round  on  a 
pivot  at  the  centre.     From  each  arm  of  the  movable 
pole,  ropes  hang  to  the  ground,  to  one  of  which  a  pair 
of  large  iron  hooks  are  fastened.     The  devotee  to  be 


TO  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


tortured,  and  to  be  tortured  too  at  his  own  special  re- 
quest, with  the  design  of  regaining  caste  he  may  have 
lost,  or  of  raising  himself  to  a  higher  rank  among  his 
fellow  mortals,  after  having  gone  through  the  usual 
ceremonies,  comes  forward  and  prostrates  himself  at 
the  feet  of  the  officiating  Brahmin.     The  spectators,  in 
approbation  of  his  devotion,  shower  down  flowers  upon 
his  head.     The  Brahmin  then  seizes  him  between  the 
shoulder  blades,  and  taking  up  as  much  of  the  sinews 
and  muscles  of  the  back  as  possible,  he  drives  the 
hooks  behind  and  close  to  the  spine.     When  he  is  pro- 
perly fastened,  the  spectators,  by  pulling  the  rope  at 
the  other  end,  draw  the  wretched  being,  writhing  in 
agony,  high  up  into  the  air,  and  then  by  running  at 
full  speed  near  to  the  post,  he  is  carried  round  and 
round  with  fearful  velocity.     While  in  this  situation,  he 
tries  to  evince  to  the  people  that  he  is  insensible  to 
pain, — a  real  stoic, — by  performing  a  number  of  tricks 
for  their  amusement,  and  by  casting  down  fruit  and 
sweetmeats  on  the  excited  multitudes,  who  witness  the 
exhibition  with  infinite  delight,  and  who  eagerly  strug- 
gle to  obtain  the  smallest  particle  that  may  fall  from 
the  hand  of  a  being  so  holy,  and  who,  by  such  suffer- 
ings of  body,  has  acquired  so  much  merit  and  distinc- 
tion !     When  the  miserable  sufferer  is  quite  exhausted 
from  pain  and  loss  of  blood,  he  is  lowered  down,  and 
immediately  another,  eager  to  obtain  like  praise  from 
the  multitude,  is  taken  up  in  the  same  way,  and  thus 
the  work  of  torture  goes  on,  in  thousands  of  places  at 
the  same  time  throughout  Bengal.     It  sometimes  hap- 
pens that  when  the  devotee  is  being  whirled  round 
with  such  great  rapidity,  the  hooks  break  through  the 


MODES    OF   SELF-TORTURE.  71 


flesh  and  sinews  of  the  back,  and  he  is  dashed  to  pieces 
on  the  earth.  But  instead  of  this  exciting  sympathy 
for  the  martyr  of  delusion,  the  spectators  look  upon  it 
as  a  just  reward  of  his  sins  committed  in  some  former 
state  of  being,  and  therefore  he  is  detested  and  ab- 
horred by  all !  How  true  is  it  that  "  the  tender  mer- 
cies of  the  wicked  are  cruel." 

At  this  same  festival,  many  other  horrible  modes  of 
self-torture  are  practised  by  the  infatuated  multitudes. 
Some  toss  themselves  from  an  eminence  upon  places 
thickly  set  with  knives  and  sharp  pointed  instruments. 
Some  stick  numbers  of  thick  needles  into  their  bodies. 
Others  pass  large  iron  rods  through  the  flesh  of  their 
sides,  holding  the  ends  of  them  in  a  pan  of  burning 
coals,  on  which  pitch  is  occasionally  thrown,  to  make 
the  fire  burn  more  fiercely,  so  as  to  heat  the  rods  and 
produce  pain  and  inflammation.  Some  pierce  their 
tongues,  and  pass  through  them  a  split  of  a  bambu, 
or  a  living  snake,  and  go  about  in  this  way,  with  the 
member  greatly  swollen  and  extended  from  the  mouth, 
exhibiting  themselves  to  the  public.  Others  roll  their 
naked  bodies  over  thorns  and  coals  of  fire !  In  short, 
their  imaginations  seem  fully  occupied  in  contriving 
ways  and  means  of  self-torture,  and  all  to  propitiate  a 
deity  whom  they  dread  but  cannot  love ;  all  in  honour 
of  Kdli,  the  wife  of  SheV,  the  destroyer.  This  god- 
dess, when  manufactured  according  to  the  description 
given  of  her  in  the  sacred  books,  is  an  image  of  a  hor- 
rible appearance.  She  is  represented  as  a  dark-coloured 
female,  dancing  on  the  body  of  her  husband,  with  long 
hair  hanging  over  her  shoulders;  with  a  tongue  far 
extended  from  her  mouth ;  with  her  face  and  neck  be- 


72  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


smeared  with  blood ;  and  with  three  eyes,  one  in  her 
forehead,  glaring  with  rage.  In  one  of  her  hands,  for 
she  has  four,  she  holds  a  human  head  by  the  hair 
lately  separated  from  the  body;  and  in  another  she 
wields  the  instrument  by  which  she  has  committed  the 
bloody  deed.  One  points  down  to  the  destruction  and 
desolation  that  follow  in  her  steps;  and  the  fourth 
points  upward,  to  indicate  a  restoration  to  a  new  birth, 
in  other  forms,  of  all  that  fall  by  her  merciless  hand. 
Her  ear-rings  represent  the  carcasses  of  her  victims. 
Her  girdle  is  composed  of  the  hands,  and  her  necklace 
of  the  skulls  of  those  she  has  slain  in  battle !  Such  is 
the  form  of  the  bloody,  ferocious,  and  disgusting  mon- 
ster which  is  worshipped  by  millions  of  the  Hindus ; 
and  such  is  the  worship  that  is  rendered  by  our  fellow- 
men,  at  this  day,  in  the  capital  city  of  the  English 
empire  in  the  East.  Such  is  the  delusion,  Christian 
reader,  in  which  the  Prince  of  Darkness  continues  to 
hold  his  subjects  in  heathen  lands;  and  such  is  the  way 
in  which  he  leads  them  forward  and  downward  to  the 
still  more  awful  miseries  of  the  place  "where  the  worm 
dieth  not,  and  the  fire  is  not  quenched."  Oh,  who  that 
knows  the  value  of  the  gospel,  can  any  longer  refuse 
to  send  it  to  such  blind  and  infatuated  idolaters,  to  whom 
there  is  now  free  access,  and  whose  very  miseries  plead 
so  loudly  in  the  ears  of  the  Christian  world ! 

In  the  neighbourhood  of  Calcutta  also,  and  not  far 
from  Serarnpur,  Ave  attended  the  festival  of  Jagatnath, 
and  for  the  first  time  Avitnessed  the  sickening;  sight  of 
more  than  one  hundred  thousand  human  beings,  in  one 
vast  mass,  boAA'ing  down  to  an  ugly  block  of  Avood,  that 
had  no  power  to  hear  or  to  help  the  deluded  votaries. 


PILGRIMAGES.  73 


Eight  different  times,  in  after  years,  in  connection  with 
other  missionary  friends,  we  attended  the  great  annual 
melas  or  fairs  at  Hardwar,  where  we  usually  spent  two 
weeks  in  preaching  the  gospel  to  the  hundreds  of  thou- 
sands who  assemble  there  from  all  parts  of  India,  to 
worship  the  Ganges,  and  wash  away  their  sins  in  that 
sacred  stream.  There  we  have  seen  idolatry  in  all  its 
varied  forms  and  in  all  its  naked  deformity,  and  su- 
perstition rampant  over  all  that  imagination  could  pos- 
sibly conceive.  At  that  celebrated  place  of  pilgrimage, 
vast  multitudes  of  religious  mendicants  assemble,  more 
degraded  than  the  beasts  that  perish,  with  bodies  rub- 
bed all  over  with  filth  and  ashes ;  their  hair  filled  with 
the  same,  and  hanging  over  their  shoulders ;  and  almost, 
sometimes  altogether,  in  a  state  of  nudity.  Some  of 
these,  doubtless,  are  the  dupes  of  a  dark  and  degrading 
superstition,  and  are  sincere  in  their  attempts  to  con- 
quer the  depraved  desires  of  their  hearts;  but  the 
greater  part  give  full  evidence  of  being  knaves  and 
deceivers,  who,  while  spending  their  time  in  idleness, 
try  to  live  as  well  as  possible  on  the  charities  of  others. 
The  time  that  is  thus  spent  in  observing  religious 
rites  by  the  people  of  Hindustan  generally,  and  in 
making  long  journeys  to  the  numerous  celebrated 
shrines  of  idolatry,  is  beyond  all  calculation.  Almost 
every  one,  to  whom  we  have  spoken  on  the  subject,  had 
visited  some  of  these  places.  Indeed,  to  make  a  pil- 
grimage at  one  time  or  the  other  during  a  man's  life- 
time, is  expected  of  everybody,  and  but  few  shrink 
from  the  expense  and  toil  necessarily  involved  in  the 
undertaking.  Many  to  gain  the  merit  that  is  said  to 
result  from  such  pilgrimages,  will  sell  off  all  their  littlo 

7 


74  MISSIONS    IN    HINDUSTAN. 


stock,  and  encumber  their  small  farms  with,  a  debt  never 
to  be  liquidated,  and  then,  it  may  be,  at  last  lay  down 
their  lives  in  attempting  to  accomplish  their  object. 
What  stronger  proof  than  this  could  be  given  of  the 
natural  and  universal  disposition  of  men  to  seek  salva- 
tion by  works  supposed  to  be  meritorious,  however 
difficult  to  be  performed,  or  however  degrading  the 
performance  may  be  to  human  nature? 

Such  is  a  brief  and  imperfect,  but  accurate  statement 
respecting  the  Hindus,  their  domestic  and  social  con- 
dition, their  superstitions,  and  some  of  their  idolatrous 
observances.  Much  more  remains  to  be  told,  when  we 
come  to  describe  the  religion  of  the  people,  and  the 
obstacles  that  lie  in  the  way  of  their  evangelization. 
What  we  state  is  the  result  of  personal  observation, 
for  many  years,  in  that  land  so  long  "bound  by  error's 
chain,"  and  it  falls  far  short  in  its  details  of  the  sad 
reality,  for  there  are  exhibitions  of  heathenism  to  be 
witnessed  there,  which  it  would  be  neither  possible  nor 
lawful  to  describe  before  a  Christian  people.  0  that 
what  has  been  stated  may  not  only  excite  our  pity,  and 
some  faint  wishes  for  the  salvation  of  that  degraded 
people ;  but  stir  up  in  all  our  hearts  a  deeper  sense  of 
our  duty  toward  them ;  our  duty  to  seek  the  honour 
of  our  Saviour,  and  the  establishment  of  his  kingdom 
in  the  midst  of  them;  and  urge  us  on  by  personal 
efforts,  benevolence,  and  prayer,  to  carry  forward  with 
greatly  increased  energy  and  zeal  the  glorious  work 
of  their  evangelization,  which  has  been  so  auspiciously 
commenced. 


TRANSCENDENTALISM.  75 


CHAPTER   IV. 

The  Hindi  religion  a  transcendentalism — Four  great  Shasters — 
Character  of  these  writings — No  claim  to  inspiration — Absurd- 
ities taught  —  Notions  of  the  Supreme  Being  —  No  worship 
rendered  to  him— Three  great  gods — Subordinate  deities  innu- 
merable—False opinions  of  the  solar  system— Origin  of  caste — 
Transmigration  of  souls — Doctrine  of^  fate— Final  absorption 
of  all  things  in  Brahm — Incarnations— Hindu  worship — Trifling 
ceremonies — Bathings— Temples— Numerous  and  opposing  sects 
— Austerities  and  tortures — Horrid  opinions  and  practices  of 
the  Thugs — Degradation  of  mendicants  indescribable. 

It  is  now  more  than  half  a  century  since  many  pious 
and  learned  men  have  specially  directed  their  attention 
and  inquiries  to  the  peculiarities  and  pretensions  of  the 
Hindu  religion,  and  of  those  ancient  books  or  Shasters 
upon  which  that  religion  is  based.  But  although  much 
has  been  written  on  this  subject,  we  may  presume  to 
say  that  but  little  is  yet  understood,  by  the  Christian 
world,  of  a  system  which  unites  in  itself  conceptions 
the  most  gross  and  irrational,  with  metaphysical  spe- 
culations the  most  subtle  and  absurd  that  ever  occupied 
the  minds  of  human  beings.  Truly,  it  is  a  transcen- 
dentalism of  the  highest  order,  and  to  describe  it  fully 
is  beyond  the  power  of  language.  As  Mr.  Byers  has 
accurately  stated,  "It  is  a  huge  conglomeration  of  phi- 
losophical speculations,  poetical  fancies,  ancient  tradi- 
tions, morality,  and  immorality;  some  traces  of  an 
original  revelation,  mixed  with  a  thousand  jarring  opi- 


76  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


nions  of  hundreds  of  different  sects,  all  jumbled  together 
in  confusion,  and  varied  into  countless  forms  by  vulgar 
prejudices  and  local  superstitions."  All  therefore  that 
we  shall  attempt,  in  giving  a  brief  account  of  Hindu- 
ism, will  be,  to  condense  some  of  the  most  important 
notices  of  the  subject  in  the  Asiatic  Researches  and 
other  writings,  and  combine  these  with  what  we  have 
learned  in  conversation  with  the  people  and  their  reli- 
gious teachers. 

We  shall  begin  with  a  notice  of  the  Hindu  Shasters, 
those  voluminous  and  poetical  writings,  that  are  em- 
bodied in  the  Sanscrit  language ;  that  are  considered 
too  sacred  for  any  to  handle  but  a  Brahmin,  and  which 
women  and  some  of  the  lower  castes  are  not  even  per- 
mitted to  hear ;  and  that  embrace  within  their  range 
of  subjects  all  kinds  and  degrees  of  knowledge  which 
it  is  necessary  for  mortals  to  possess.     They  profess  to 
teach   not   only  theology,  but  metaphysics   and   the 
whole  circle  of  sciences,  such  as  medicine  and  music, 
archery  and  architecture,  and  all  the  mechanical  arts ; 
astronomy  and  grammar,  cosmogony,  chronology,  and 
geography;    incarnations    and   exploits  of  gods    and 
demi-gods ;  religious  rites,  transmigrations  of  the  soul, 
charms  and  incantations ;  law  and  logic,  mythology, 
&c.  &c.     The  books  treating  on  all  these  subjects  are 
called  the  four  great  Shasters,  and  are  acknowledged 
by  the  masses  of  the  people  to  be  divine.     There  are 
some  among  the  Hindus,  however,  who  call  themselves 
Vedantists,  and  who  acknowledge  none  as  divine  but 
the  first  class  of  these,  called  the  four  Veds.     These 
oracles,  more  ancient  and  venerable  than  all,  are  said 
to  have  issued  directly  from  the  mouth  of  the  Creator 


FOUR   GREAT    SHASTERS.  77 


himself,  and  by  means  of  no  human  instrumentality 
whatever.  They  evidently  contain  sentiments  more 
pure  and  sublime,  and  more  nearly  approaching  the 
truth  than  subsequent  writings,  which  proves  that  idol- 
atrous nations  deteriorate  in  sound  knowledge  and 
sober  thought,  rather  than  improve,  as  they  descend 
from  the  period  of  their  organization.  Vedantists, 
indeed,  will  not  admit,  that  the  Shasters  of  this  class 
teach  the  doctrine  of  idol  worship  at  all,  but  insist  that 
they  teach  the  unity  of  God,  as  existing  in  the  one 
great  and  all-pervading  essence  Brahm,  and  that  this 
Brahm,  who  is  generally  unconscious  of  his  own 
existence,  is,  in  reality,  the  only  existing  being  in  the 
universe,  all  other  beings  or  things  being  nothing  more 
than  maya,  shadows  of  the  supreme  Brahm,  and  with- 
out substance ! 

Besides  the  original  Veds,  there  are  four  Upa  Veds 
or  sub-scriptures,  said  to  have  been  delivered  by 
Brahma,  the  first  person  in  the  Hindu  Triad.  These 
form  the  second  class  of  the  four  great  Shasters.  The 
Ved  Angas,  consisting  of  six  books,  profess  to  teach 
the  leading  principles  of  science,  and  to  be  of  the  same 
divine  origin.  These  occupy  the  third  rank.  The 
four  Up  Angas  form  the  fourth  and  last  division  of  the 
great  Shasters.  These  are  said  to  be  Avritten  by  the 
sages  Vyasa,  Valmyka,  Manu,  and  others,  and  are  more 
voluminous  than  any  of  the  foregoing.  The  first  divi- 
sion of  these  Up  Angas  includes  the  eighteen  Puranas, 
the  Ramayan,  and  the  Mahabaf'at,  (the  Bhagavad  Gre'ta 
forming  a  part  of  the  latter.)  The  second  and  third 
divisions  of  the  Up  Angas  treat  generally  on  metaphy- 
sical subjects;  and  the  fourth  and  last  division  of  eigh- 

7* 


78  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


teen  books  includes  the  statutes  of  Manti  on  all  points 
of  Hindu  law,  political  and  religious.  The  mind  can 
scarcely  grasp  the  size  and  number  of  these  sacred 
books,  the  half  of  "which  no  man  could  possibly  read  in 
a  whole  lifetime.  It  would  require  an  immense  fortune 
to  procure  a  copy  of  them.  The  Veds  alone  make 
eleven  immense  folios;  the  Puranas  count  about  two 
million  of  lines  of  poetry ;  and  the  other  books  are  much 
in  the  same  proportion.  Sir  William  Jones,  the  great- 
est of  Oriental  scholars,  when  contemplating  the  Hindu 
Shasters,  writes,  "Wherever  we  direct  our  attention  to 
Hindu  literature,  the  notion  of  infinity  presents  itself." 
And  what,  in  our  estimation,  invests  this  whole  matter 
with  immense  importance  is  this,  that  in  the  view  of  a 
conscientious  Hindu,  his  salvation  depends  on  paying 
a  strict  attention  to  all  the  minutiae  of  the  Shasters, 
on  all  subjects  embraced  within  their  extensive  range, 
although  it  is  absolutely  beyond  his  power  to  know 
them,  or  to  observe  the  hundredth  part  of  them ! 

The  character  of  these  writings  is  best  known  by 
the  foolish  and  absurd  opinions  which  they  teach,  the 
gross  system  of  religion  they  inculcate,  and  the  fruits 
they  produce  in  the  lives  of  those  who  profess  to  be 
guided  by  them.  From  all  this  it  is  abundantly  ma- 
nifest that  they  can  lay  no  just  claims  to  inspiration. 
What  the  Veds  condemn,  the  Puranas  teach  and  ap- 
plaud. The  former,  in  many  places,  insist  on  the  unity 
of  God;  the  latter  speak  of  innumerable  gods,  existing 
as  separate  beings,  with  interests  and  pursuits  alto- 
gether different.  Some  of  them  recommend  female 
immolation  on  the  Suttee  as  the  most  meritorious  of 
human  acts !     Others  enjoin  the  sacrifice  of  the  first- 


TEACHINGS  OF  THE  SHASTERS.         79 


born  for  the  sin  of  the  soul,  as  of  divine  appointment ! 
In  some,  the  observance  of  the  most  puerile  rites  and 
ceremonies,  the  performance  of  long  and  weary  pil- 
grimages, and  the  bathing  of  the  body  in  certain  cele- 
brated streams,  are  the  meritorious  and  appointed 
means  for  the  removal  of  sin.  In  some  of  them,  pro- 
fessing to  treat  of  cosmogony  and  geography,  the 
Hindu  is  required  to  believe,  as  an  undoubted  verity, 
■what  modern  science  and  discoveries  prove  to  be  gross 
and  palpable  falsehood.  They  teach,  for  instance,  that 
the  earth  which  we  inhabit  is  not  a  globe,  but  a  flat 
and  extended  plain,  hundreds  of  thousands  of  miles  in 
diameter ;  and  that  in  the  centre  of  this  plain,  some- 
where in  Hindustan,  of  course,  there  is  an  immense 
mountain  called  Shu  Marti,  compared  with  which,  the 
Himalayas  themselves  are  but  as  mole-hills,  but  which 
none  of  their  celebrated  pilgrims  have  ever  seen ;  that 
it  is  several  hundred  thousand  miles  in  height,  with  its 
top  broader  than  its  base,  and  crowned  by  three  im- 
mense peaks,  the  residence  of  the  sacred  Triad;  that 
around  this  abode  of  man,  there  is  an  ocean  of  salt 
water,  in  the  form  of  a  belt,  of  the  same  diameter  as 
the  earth  itself;  and  that  so  on,  in  regular  succession, 
only  always  doubling  the  diameter,  there  are  seven  cir- 
cular islands  and  oceans ;  the  first  of  salt  water,  the 
second  of  milk,  the  third  of  curds,  the  fourth  of  ghi 
or  liquid  butter,  the  fifth  sugar-cane  juice,  the  sixth 
of  honey,  and  the  seventh  of  fresh  water !  How  long, 
we  would  ask,  can  a  system  of  religion,  based  upon 
such  Shasters  as  these,  stand  before  the  light  of  true 
science  and  of  Bible  truth,  when  this  is  brought  tc 
bear  upon  it,  and  expose  its  manifest  absurdities? 


80  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


Having  endeavoured  to  present  a  short  account  of 
the  Hindu  Shasters,  we  shall  now  try  to  give  an  outline 
of  what  they  teach  concerning  the  Supreme  Being,  and 
other  deities  whom  they  profess  to  worship.  Here 
also  we  will  find  many  strange  and  extravagant  notions, 
but  such  as  might  be  expected  when  the  vain  imagina- 
tions of  the  heathen  are  directed  to  subjects  so  infinitely 
beyond  their  comprehension.  As  the  Apostle  forcibly 
remarks  respecting  the  heathen  in  his  day,  so  the 
Hindus,  "  professing  themselves  to  be  wise,  have  become 
fools,  and  changed  the  glory  of  the  incorruptible  God  in- 
to images  made  like  to  corruptible  man,  and  to  birds  and 
four-footed  beasts  and  creeping  things;"  "they  have 
changed  the  truth  of  God  into  a  lie,  and  they  worship 
and  serve  the  creature  more  than  the  Creator,  who  is 
God  over  all,  blessed  for  ever."  Although  the  Hindus 
are  said  to  have  three  hundred  and  thirty  millions  of 
gods,  and  are  in  fact  and  in  practice  a  nation  not  only 
of  polytheists,  but  of  pantheists,  as  this  is  only  a  de- 
finite put  for  an  indefinite  number,  yet,  they  maintain 
the  doctrine  that  there  is  but  one  self-existing  and  all- 
pervading  spirit,  and  that  this  indescribable  abstract 
existence  is  Brahm.  That  Brahm  is  in  all  things,  and 
that  all  things  are  Brahm !  They  say  that  Brahm,  in 
his  primary  and  proper  state  of  being,  is  an  impersonal 
essence,  or  nirgun,  that  is,  without  all  qualities  or  at- 
tributes, and  that  when  he  thus  exists,  there  is  and 
can  be  no  other  being  or  thing,  and  no  external  uni- 
verse ;  that  his  unity  is  so  perfect  and  absolute,  and 
his  being  so  unique  and  refined,  that  he  is,  in  his  pro- 
per state  of  existence,  an  infinite  negation,  that  is,  he 
is  without  intellect  or  intelligence,  or  even  a  conscious- 


HINDU    DEITIES — BRAIIM.  81 


ness  of  his  own  existence,  and  that  his  blessedness  con- 
sists in  a  repose  so  perfect  and  profound,  as  to  forbid 
the  possibility  of  disturbance  in  this  dreamless  and 
solitary  abyss  of  negative  happiness ! 

But  although  this  be  the  character  and  state  of 
Brahm  for  indefinite  periods,  each  almost  infinite  in 
duration,  yet  he  does  not  always  continue  in  this  state 
of  negative  happiness.  After  the  lapse  of  countless 
ao-cs,  with  no  being  in  existence  but  this  same  uncon- 
scious  Brahm,  in  some  strange  and  unaccountable  and 
indescribable  manner,  he  passes  from  the  state  of 
nirgfai  to  that  of  sagun,  that  is,  he  becomes  possessed 
of  attributes  and  active  qualities,  and  then,  starting 
from  his  profound  slumbers,  he  assumes  the  semblance 
of  a  form,  and  exclaims,  I  am.  Having  now  assumed 
active  qualities,  he  becomes  dissatisfied  with  his  solitary 
situation,  and,  all  at  once,  a  desire  to  become  many 
arises  in  his  mind.  In  sport  he  imagines  a  picture  of 
distinct  existences,  and  immediately  the  universe 
springs  into  being,  or  rather  a  model  of  it  is  presented 
before  him.  Having  thus  manifested  the  universe,  and 
created  the  Triad  or  his  representatives,  together  with 
all  the  seeds  or  principles  of  things  that  should  exist, 
and  having  committed  the  finishing  of  creation  to  them, 
he  changed  the  state  of  energy  he  had  assumed  for 
that  of  repose,  absorbed  into  his  own  essence  the  at- 
tributes he  had  acquired,  and  falls  back  into  his  original 
state  of  quiescence  and  unconsciousness,  altogether 
unencumbered  by  the  cares  and  superintendence  of  the 
visionary  empire  he  has  left  behind  him! 

All  this,  we  fear,  will  be  but  little  understood  by 
minds  accustomed  to  sober  thought,  but  the  acute  minda 


82  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


of  the  Hindus,  accustomed  from  infancy  to  place  im- 
plicit belief  in  such  dogmas,  and  to  reconcile  such  ap- 
parent contradictions,  regard  it  all  as  plain  as  noonday. 
And  when  such  absurd  notions  of  the  existence  and 
attributes  of  the  Supreme  Being,  are  entertained  by 
millions  with  intellects  naturally  as  good  as  any  of  our 
own  race  possess,  is  it  not  as  strong  an  evidence  as 
could  be  furnished,  that  "the  world  by  wisdom  knows 
not  God,  that  they  have  become  vain  in  their  imagina- 
tions, and  that  their  foolish  hearts  are  darkened?" 

It  is  to  be  observed  that,  during  this  brief  period  in 
which  Brahm  assumed  the  state  of  consciousness,  the 
only  thing  effected  was  a  kind  of  ideal  manifestation 
of  the  universe ;  and,  in  some  inexplicable  manner,  an 
evolving  from  himself,  and  as  a  part  of  himself,  just 
as  the  web  is  evolved  from  the  bowels  of  the  spider, 
the  sacred  three,  Brahma,  Vishnu,  and  Shiv,  with  their 
consorts  Saraswati,  Lakshmi,  and  Parvati.  Accord- 
ing to  the  Hindu  notion  there  is,  properly  speaking, 
no  such  thing  as  creation,  or  a  production  of  something 
out  of  nothing.  They  reiterate  the  ancient  maxim, 
"From  nothing,  nothing  comes,"  and  tell  us  plainly 
that  the  manifested  universe  is  nothing  more  than  a 
shadow  or  illusion ;  that  it  is  all  may  a  and  without 
substance, — a  mere  reflection  of  Brahm,  and  must  all 
finally  be  absorbed  into  him.  To  the  Triad  the  com- 
plete development,  preservation,  and  final  restoration 
of  all  things  to  their  original  source,  is  committed. 
Brahma  is  the  creator,  or  rather  the  expander  of  all 
things,  and  his  wife,  Saraswati  the  protectress  of  arts 
and  sciences ;  Vishnu  is  the  preserver  of  the  universe 
and  its  inhabitants,  and  his  favourite  spouse,  Lakshmi, 


HINDU    DEITIES. 


83 


is  the  goddess  of  fertility ;  Shiv  is  the  destroyer  or 
disorganizer  of  animated  beings,  or  in  other  words,  the 
devil  of  Hindustan,  and  his  wife,  Parvati,  like  him,  is 
armed  with  destructive  weapons.  These  three  are  now 
known  as  the  great  gods  of  Hindustan.  As  for  Brahm, 
the  fountain  and  source  of  all,  "  the  one  great  Brahm, 
who  is  without  a  second,"  as  he  is  possessed  of  no 
moral  attributes  or  perfections,  and  of  nothing  that  is 
excellent  or  lovely,  how  can  he  be  adored  by  mortals  ? 
It  is  impossible.  Hence,  for  the  worship  of  Brahm, 
not  a  single  temple  has  been  dedicated,  and  not  an 
altar  has  been  erected  in  all  India !  To  him,  who 
neither  sees  nor  helps,  no  worship  is  addressed,  and  no 
homage  rendered.  Like  a  blank  in  creation,  he  is  re- 
garded as  being  far  removed  beyond  the  present  scenes, 
and  as  regardless  of  all  religious  services.  It  ought 
also  to  be  known,  that  to  Brahma,  the  first  person  in  the 
Hindu  Triad,  and  whom  the  Hindus  recognise  as  the 
Creator  of  all  things — the  being  who  gives  them  rain 
from  heaven  and  fruitful  seasons,  and  all  things  richly 
to  enjoy,  there  is  no  worship  given  by  the  people  in 
the  present  day.  By  the  commission  of  a  vile  and 
criminal  act,  he  has  long  since  lost  his  right  to  the 
respect  and  services  of  his  creatures !  It  is  from  this 
circumstance,  we  doubt  not,  that  the  Hindus  are  prover- 
bially an  ungrateful  people.  They  have  not  been  accus- 
tomed to  render  gratitude  for  divine  favours,  and  hence 
their  language  scarcely  furnishes  a  term  sufficiently 
strong  to  express  the  idea  of  true  gratitude.  It  may 
then  be  asked,  since  they  worship  not  him  whom  they 
regard  as  the  Creator  and  giver  of  all  things,  whom  do 
they  worship?     We  reply,  they  worship  the  other  two 


84  MISSIONS    IN   HINDUSTAN. 


persons  of  the  Triad,  the  Preserver  and  the  Destroyer, 
and  it  may  be  safely  asserted,  that  into  this  worship 
not  a  particle  of  love  enters.  It  is  all  a  worship  of 
selfishness  and  of  slavish  fear.  They  worship  the  Pre- 
server, simply  because  they  wish  to  retain  all  the  bless- 
ings the  Creator  may  have  given  them ;  because  they 
wish  to  part  with  nothing  they  already  have :  and 
they  worship  the  Destroyer  entirely  from  the  principle 
of  fear.  Hence  the  bloody  sacrifices  required  in  his 
worship,  and  hence  the  weary  pilgrimages  and  tortures, 
and  the  horrid  rites  practised,  in  honour  of  this  dreaded 
deity,  which  we  have  already  attempted  to  describe. 

But  to  proceed  with  an  account  of  the  important 
work  of  creation  which  now  devolved  on  Brahma.  Al- 
together unlike  the  Christian  Scriptures,  which  tell  us 
in  language  so  simple  and  sublime,  "  That  in  the  be- 
ginning God  created  the  heavens  and  the  earth,"  and 
that,  as  he  made  all  things,  so  "he  upholds  all  things 
by  the  word  of  his  power,"  the  Hindu  books  give  long 
and  even  contradictory  accounts  of  the  manner  in 
which  it  was  accomplished,  and  the  difficulties  that  at- 
tended the  various  expedients  that  were  employed, 
such  as  churning  the  ocean  with  a  mountain,  &c.  In- 
stead of  being  carried  forward  to  a  speedy  and  success- 
ful issue,  the  business  of  creation  was  found  to  be  too 
much  for  Brahma,  and  hence  Brahm  himself  was 
obliged,  a  second  time,  to  assume  a  new  and  peculiar 
form  under  the  title  of  Punish,  the  male,  and  also  to 
create  Prakr'iti,  or  Nature,  as  the  female.  By  these 
the  mundane  egg  was  produced,  in  which  was  deposited 
all  the  seeds  and  principles  of  future  things,  as  also 
Brahma  himself,  the  representative  of  the  Supreme. 


ACCOUNT   OF    CREATION.  85 


This  egg  floated  like  a  bubble  on  the  abyss  of  primeval 
waters  for  the  period  of  four  thousand  three  hundred 
millions  of  years,  until,  under  the  fostering  and  vivify- 
ing influence  of  Divinity,  it  constantly  increased  in 
size  and  splendour,  and  at  length  burst,  and  forth 
sprang  the  deity  himself,  and  with  him  all  the  ele- 
mentary principles  of  creation  !  From  all  this,  we 
think,  there  may  be  traced  some  faint  ideas  of  what, 
by  tradition,  may  have  been  handed  down  of  the 
Mosaic  account  of  the  creation,  where  it  is  said,  "  The 
Spirit  of  God  moved,  or  brooded,  upon  the  face  of  the 
waters." 

The  external  creation  was  now  formed.  Reference 
has  already  been  made  to  that  part  of  it  which  the 
Hindus  occupy,  called  Jamba  Dhwip,  with  its  annular 
seas  and  islands.  But  in  addition  to  this,  the  Shasters 
speak  of  thirteen  other  worlds, — seven  as  being  infe- 
rior to  our  own,  the  abodes  of  all  manner  of  miserable 
and  loathsome  creatures,  and  six  as  superior  to  the 
one  we  inhabit,  as  being  most  glorious  in  appearance, 
the  residences  of  the  gods  themselves.  Errors  also, 
the  most  absurd  and'  palpable,  are  asserted  and  sup- 
ported by  divine  authority  in  the  Shasters,  in  regard 
to  the  solar  system :  but  they  are  such  errors  as  would 
be  most  likely  to  originate  in  ignorant  minds.  The 
sun  is  said  to  be  only  a  few  hundred  thousand  miles 
from  the  earth  and  to  be  much  nearer  than  any  of 
tin-  planets;  and  the  moon  is  thought  to  be  as  far  be- 
yond the  sun,  as  the  sun  is  distant  from  the  earth! 

After  tin-  work  of  creation,  the  next  difficulty  expe- 
rienced  by  Brahma,  was  the  peopling  of  these  immense 
regions  with  animated  beings.     All  the  souls  or  spirits 


86 


MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


that  should  ever  exist,  had  already  issued  from  the 
supreme  Brahm,  just  as  sparks  fly  off  from  a  ball  of 
fire ;  and  these  were  now  to  be  united  to  material 
forms.  Various  attempts  were  made  by  Brahma  to 
accomplish  this  object,  but  without  success.  At  last 
he  had  recourse  to  a  tedious  and  trying  course  of  aus- 
terities and  ascetic  devotions,  and  when  these  also 
failed,  it  is  said  that  "  he  sat  down  and  wept  in  de- 
spair." From  the  tears  that  rolled  from  his  eyes, 
there  sprang  into  being  a  numerous  offspring.  At  the 
same  time  an  immense  progeny  of  rational  and  irra- 
tional beings,  all  possessing  souls  of  the  same  nature, 
issued  from  all  the  members  of  his  body.  From  his 
mouth  came  the  sacred  veds, — from  his  head  the 
Brahmin  caste,  the  keepers  and  expounders  of  the 
Shasters,  and  the  heads  of  the  other  castes.  From  his 
body  came  the  Visliya  or  Bais  caste,  who  are  the 
capitalists  and  agriculturists,  or  supporters  of  the  body 
politic.  From  his  arms  came  the  KsJiatraya,  or  mili- 
tary caste,  to  defend  the  community.  From  the  feet 
of  Brahma  sprung  the  Sudra  caste,  to  perform  the 
servile  duties  of  society.  Thus,  this  thing  of  caste, 
according  to  the  Shasters,  is  not  merely  an  accidental 
or  economical  arrangement  in  society,  but  it  is  a  divine 
and  sacred  ordinance, — a  something  that  has  its  foun- 
dation in  the  very  nature  of  things ;  and  hence,  in  the 
opinion  of  good  Hindus,  it  would  be  as  impossible  for 
a  man  belonging  to  one  of  the  lower  castes  to  be  trans- 
formed  into  a  being  of  the  higher  caste,  as  it  would  be 
to  change  a  dog  into  a  horse,  or  a  crawling  insect  into 
an  elephant.  These  ideas,  and  many  others  equally 
absurd,  are  infused  into  the  minds  of  the  Hindus  from 


HINDU    CHRONOLOGY.  87 


their  earliest  infancy,  and  it  would  be  just  as  repugnant 
to  their  feelings,  if  born  in  the  higher  order  of  caste,  to 
eat  with  a  Sudar,  as  it  would  be  with  our  feelings  to  eat 
at  the  same  trough  with  the  vilest  of  animals.  And 
then  when  it  is  considered  that  a  Hindu,  having  once 
lost  his  caste,  falls  beneath  the  human  genus,  to  which, 
by  any  effort  of  his  own,  he  can  never  hope  to  arise, 
and  that  he  is  henceforth  to  be  considered  as  an  abso- 
lute outcast, — the  residuum  and  offscouring  of  all 
things,  those  in  Christian  lands  may  imagine,  but  can- 
not realize  the  power  that  this  singular  custom  exerts 
over  the  Hindu  people,  and  the  tenacity  with  which 
they  cling  to  it,  even  when  their  understandings  are 
sufficiently  enlightened  to  see  its  utter  absurdity. 

The  universe  as  thus  created  or  expanded  into  its 
present  form  by  Brahma,  is  to  exist  for  a  period  coeval 
with  the  life  of  the  Creator ;  for  it  is  to  be  remembered, 
that  he  was  himself  produced  by  Brahm  at  the  same 
time  with  all  the  essential  principles  of  things,  that  all 
exist  as  a  portion  of  the  Supreme  himself,  and  must 
finally  lose  their  separate  existence  and  be  absorbed 
back  again  into  their  original  source.  The  Hindu, 
chronology  fixes  the  duration  of  Brahma  and  his  works 
with  great  particularity.  Time  they  measure  by  yugs, 
onaha  yugs,  munwantras,  and  kalpas;  that  is,  ages, 
great  ages,  cycles,  &c.  But,  laying  these  aside,  we 
may  state  in  round  numbers,  that  more  than  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  billions  of  years,  or  half  of  the  life  of 
Brahma,  has  already  passed.  A  single  day  of  his  ex- 
istence, called  a  kalpa,  is  a  period  of  four  thousand 
three  hundred  and  twenty  millions  of  solar  years;  his 
night  is  of  the  same  duration;  his  year  is  made  up  of 


88  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


three  hundred  and  sixty  such  days  and  nights,  and  his 
lifetime  is  to  consist  of  one  hundred  such  years.     At 
the  close  of  each  day  of  Brahma,  awful  catastrophes 
occur  for  the  punishment  of  the  wicked,  by  which  they 
are  swept  away,  and  then  the  earth  is  again  repeopled 
by  a  new  and  different  race.     When  his  night  sets  in, 
wearied  with  the  cares  of  such  a  government,  and  the 
efforts  necessary  to  its  management  for  so  long  a  time, 
he  retires  to  sleep,  and  drawing  around  him  the  cur- 
tains of  darkness,  the  luminaries  of  heaven  are  all 
extinguished.     Deep  calleth  unto  deep;  the  tempest 
rises,  the  rains  descend,  and  soon  the  lower  worlds, 
the  earth  which  we  inhabit,  and  the  two  worlds  next 
above,    are    all    submerged.     Brahma   now   assumes 
the  form  of  Narayan,  or  Sea  God,  casts  himself  upon 
the  back  of  an  immense  sea  serpent,  closes  his  eyes, 
and  sleeps  profoundly,  "amid  the  wreck  of  matter  and 
the  crush  of  worlds."     During  this  scene,  Indra,  the 
ruler  of  the  celestials,  with  his  three  hundred  and  thirty 
millions  of  deities,  filled  with  consternation,  rush  into 
the  fourth  heaven  for  safety;  and  those  among  men, 
who  by  their  meritorious  virtues  or  sufferings  had  dis- 
tinguished themselves,  are  raised  to  the  rank  of  demi- 
gods, and  admitted  to  occupy  a  place  on  the  top  of 
Mount  Meru,  or  in  some  other  of  the  highest  heavens. 
None   however  of   the  beings  that    are    disorganized 
during  Brahma's  night   are  lost.     When  he   awakes 
again,  all  are  reorganized  in  such  forms  as  their  merits 
or  demerits  in  former  births  demand.     In  the  opinion 
of  Hindus,  there  is  a  constant  transmigration  of  souls 
taking  place,  so  that  the  death  of  a  man  or  an  animal 
is  only  the  change  of  a  soul  into  some  other  form  of 


FATALISM.  89 


animated  being,  which  soul  does  not  then  begin  to  exist 
for  the  first  time,  but  which  has  existed  since  the  crea- 
tion. "When  a  soul  passes  from  the  form  of  a  man  to 
that  of  some  ravenous  animal,  or  disgusting  crawling 
insect,  this  is  looked  upon  as  the  punishment  awarded 
for  sins  committed  in  a  former  birth.  But  in  the  mind 
of  a  Hindu,  sin  is  a  thing  of  small  importance.  He 
looks  upon  it  as  a  part  of  his  fate  more  than  as  his  fault, 
as  merely  the  development  of  what  the  Creator  wrote 
on  his  forehead.  Every  Hindu  considers  himself  to 
be  in  reality  a  part  of  deity ;  a  shadow,  and  not  sub- 
stance; to  be  just  what  God  made  him  to  be;  and 
where  then  is  there  any  ground  to  charge  himself  with 
blame?  Entertaining  these  views,  and  with  feelings 
scared  and  moulded  under  their  influence,  the  thief 
usually  submits  to  the  degradation  of  a  prison,  and 
the  murderer  to  the  ignominy  of  the  scaffold,  with  a 
hardened  indifference,  as  enduring  what  it  was  impos- 
sible for  them  to  avoid,  and  as  in  that  very  way  exactly 
fulfilling  the  end  of  their  existence!  To  men  in 
such  a  condition,  how  true  it  is  that  the  gospel  of 
Christ  is  foolishness !  How  hard  to  convince  such  of 
the  exceeding  sinfulness  of  sin,  and  their  need  of  that 
great  salvation  which  the  Bible  reveals.  How  often, 
when  reasoning  with  them  on  these  subjects,  have  we 
felt,  that  "with  men  it  is  impossible"  to  convince  and 
persuade  them,  "but  with  God  all  things  are  possible." 
Immense  as  the  period  may  seem  included  in  a  single 
day  and  night  of  Brahma,  that  is  a  period  of  eight 
thousand  six  hundred  and  forty  millions  of  years,  it 
is  but  as  a  point  of  time  when  compared  with  the  life 
of  Brahma,  or  the  duration  of  his  works.     During  his 

8* 


90 


MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


life,  thirty-six  thousand  such  days  and  nights  must  pass 
away,  which  will  be  equal  to  a  period  of  more  than 
three  hundred  billions  of  years,  and  then  the  time  will 
come,  when  Brahma  himself,  and  the  whole  visible 
creation,  must  cease  to  exist ;  when  all  things  must  be 
reabsorbed  in  Brahm,  the  great  progenitor.  Into  his 
alone  imperishable  nature  must  be  transfused  all  the 
grosser  elements,  as  well  as  the  subtle  and  spiritual 
essences  of  creation.  Spirits,  whether  evil  or  good, 
men  and  animals,  vegetables  and  minerals,  all  must 
revert  to  their  original  source — to  him  who  claims  them 
as  a  part  of  himself,  to  lose  their  personal  identity, 
and  be  swallowed  up  in  the  great  Supreme !  What ! 
it  may  be  asked,  is  this  to  be  the  termination  of  the 
fair  fabric  of  creation,  and  of  all  the  glorious  intelli- 
gences that  have  existed,  and  may  yet  exist,  to  glorify 
and  enjoy  God?  And  must  creation  not  only  become 
a  blank,  but  must  the  darkness  and  dreariness  of  "old 
night"  continue  to  reign  throughout  eternity?  The 
Hindu  Shasters  answer,  No.  The  business  of  creation 
will  be  resumed.  When  myriads  of  ages  shall  have 
passed  away  in  unbroken  silence,  Brahm  will  again 
awake  from  his  slumbers,  and  manifest  himself  much 
in  the  same  way  as  he  has  always  been  doing;  so 
that  the  present  creation  is  only  one  of  an  interminable 
series  in  the  great  chain  of  eternity ! 

Volumes  might  easily  be  filled  with  these  kinds  of 
legends,  were  we  to  enter  fully  into  the  details  of  Hindu 
mythology,  or  even  to  give  an  outline  of  what  is  most 
minutely  recorded  in  the  Shasters  of  the  other  persons 
of  the  Hindu  Triad,  and  of  all  the  feuds  and  encoun- 
ters that  have  taken  place  between  gods  and  goddesses, 


HINDU    FANATICISM.  91 


avatars  and  demons,  so  different  in  their  moral  cha- 
racter, objects,  and  interests ;  but  it  is  not  the  object 
of  this  work  to  do  more  than  present  a  very  short  view 
of  the  leading  and  popular  belief  of  the  Hindus  on 
these  subjects,  and  we  presume  that  minds  disposed  to 
seriousness,  would  not  wish  to  follow  us  longer  in  these 
details.     These  are  subjects,  however,  to  which   the 
Hindus  themselves  will  listen  with  the  utmost  eager- 
ness, and  in  which  they  take  infinite   delight.     The 
feuds  and  wars,  and  deception  and  slaughter,  that  for 
millions  of  years  were  carried  on  between  the  solar 
and  lunar  races,  and  which  are  detailed  with  the  great- 
est minuteness  in  the  sacred  books,  mingled  with  all 
kinds  of  marvel  and  extravagances,  are  heard  with 
exquisite  pleasure,  by  minds  whose  credulity  increases 
in  proportion  to  the  demands  that  are  made  upon  it. 
The  incarnations  of  Vishnu  in  the  persons  of  Earn 
and  Krishna;  and  of   Shiv  in  the  forms 'of  Durgd 
and  Kali,  together  with  the  obscene  Ling  and  sacred 
Bull,  have  now  become  the  chief  objects  of  worship  in 
Hindustan.     The  life  of  the  sporting  Krishna,  and 
the  legends  connected  with  the  abominable  Ling,  too 
impure  to  be  described,  must  not  "be  dwelt  upon  in  this 
place.     These  exhibitions  of  depravity  are  all  but  too 
fully  developed  in  the  lives  of  the  Hindus  themselves, 
v.  bo  are  instructed  to  imitate  closely  all  the  actions  of 
their  deities.     The  theory  of  Hinduism,  as  it  is  re- 
duced to  practice,  in  the  every  day  conduct  of  the 
people,  as  well  as  the  absurdities,  contradictions,  and 
known  falsehoods  with  which  it  so  plentifully  abounds, 
is  fully  proved  to  be  an  invention  of  designing  men, 


92  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


and  the  fruit  of  the  vain  and  bewildered  imaginations 
of  fanaticism  and  folly. 

From  what  we  know  of  the  letter  and  spirit  of  Hin- 
duism, and  from  what  we  have  witnessed  of  the  idola- 
trous worship  of  the  people,  we  have  no  hesitation  in 
saying,  that  the  religious  services  rendered  to  the  gods, 
are  not  performed  from  principles  of  love  and  gratitude 
at  all.  No,  the  grand  object  of  every  form  of  Hindu 
worship  is,  not  to  obtain  a  liberation  from  sin,  and  a 
meetness  for  the  enjoyment  of  heaven,  but  a  liberation 
from  future  existence  by  a  perfect  absorption  in  the 
essence  of  Brahm ;  or  by  penance  and  austerities  to 
appease  and  avert  the  wrath  of  the  god  of  destruction. 
The  innumerable  rites  and  ceremonies  of  their  worship, 
are  performed  to  humour  their  divinities,  and  their 
praises  are  but  gross  adulation  and  flattery,  used  as 
bribes  to  obtain  their  selfish  objects,  or  they  are  con- 
sidered as  acts  of  merit  to  lay  them  under  obligation 
to  grant  the  thing  desired.  Such  notions  are  not 
merely  secretly  entertained  or  concealed  from  public 
observation,  but  they  are  plainly  declared  by  the  wor- 
shippers, and  as  explicitly  taught  in  the  Shasters. 

It  would  not  be  practicable  here  to  enter  into  a  full 
detail  of  the  idolatrous  worship  of  the  Hindus,  and  yet 
some  notice  of  it  may  not  only  be  interesting  to  our 
readers,  but  necessary  to  complete  this  brief  sketch  of 
Hinduism.  The  forms  and  ritual  of  Hindu  worship 
are  not  only  minute  and  trifling,  but  hollow  and  heart- 
less. In  their  whole  extent,  as  given  in  the  sacred 
books,  it  would  be  absolutely  out  of  the  power  of  any 
man  to  become  fully  acquainted  with  them,  and  much 
more  impossible  for  him  to  observe  them  in  his  daily 


FORMS   AND    RITUAL.  93 


practice.     Some,  in  order  to  attain  a  superior  degree 
of  merit  by  their  obedience,  forsake  the  world,  and 
give  themselves  up  to  what  they  call  religious  duties. 
Just  as  many  of  these  ceremonies,  however,  as  may  be 
considered  sufficient  to  keep  a  man  from  degradation  in 
the  next  birth  he  may  take,  are  all  that  the  masses  of 
the  people  attempt  to  perform.     The  Shasters  not  only 
describe  with  the  greatest  exactness  all  the  duties  to  be 
performed  by  every  man  and  woman  of  e,very  caste, 
and  in  every  condition  of  life,  but  also  the  manner  of 
performing  them,  and  that,  too,  with  a  minuteness  and 
particularity  which  puts  it  out  of  the  power  of  any 
man  to  exercise  his  own  judgment  on  any  point  what- 
ever.    In  other  words,  it  is  a  religion  cut  out  to  fit 
every  man,  in  every  place,  and  at  every  time  ;  and  the 
docile  Hindu,  like  a  machine,  has  nothing  to  do  but 
to  submit  to  the  movements  prescribed.     The  Shasters 
direct  that  the  first  thing  a  Hindu  worshipper  should 
do  in  the  morning,  is  to  select  a  twig  from  a  certain 
tree  with  which  he  is  to  clean  his  teeth ;  and  then  he 
is  instructed  as  to  the  particular  way  in  which  he  is  to 
dispose  of  this  twig  !     A  failure  in  this,  or  in  any  other 
primary  duty,  will  vitiate  all  his  other  performances 
for  the  day.     He  is  then  to  bathe,  not  only  to  remove 
bodily  defilements,  but  to  wash   away  his  sins.     If 
practicable,  he  is  to  repair  to  a  running  stream ;  and 
above  all  others,  if  within  his  reach,  he  is  to  prefer 
the  sacred  waters  of  the  Ganges.     Standing  in  the 
water  to  the  middle,  he  mutters  a  number  of  sacred 
texts  in  the  Sanscrit  language,  a  word  of  which,  it 
may  be,  he  does  not  understand, — takes  water  up  be- 
tween his  hands,  drinks  a  part  of  it,  and  throws  tho 


94 


MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


rest  before  him  as  a  libation.  Next  he  throws  water 
over  each  shoulder  and  on  his  head  several  times,  also 
toward  the  sky,  and  the  sun,  if  it  has  made  its  appear- 
ance. Then  with  the  use  of  the  rosary,  he  repeats  a 
number  of  prayers  to  the  waters,  and  finally,  filling 
his  mouth  with  water,  and  placing  his  fingers  in  his 
ears,  he  meditates  on  the  gods,  invokes  their  blessing 
on  the  performance,  and  plunges  three  times  beneath 
the  stream. »  The  whole  ceremony  is  concluded  by 
washing  the  cloth  that  surrounded  his  loins,  a  duty 
prescribed  by  the  same  authority.  The  worshippers 
of  Mdlid  Dev,  and  particularly  the  females,  when  en- 
gaged in  their  morning  ablutions,  take  wet  clay  and 
make  a  representative  of  the  Ling ;  then  bow  down 
to  the  vile  symbol  their  own  hands  have  formed,  and 
afterward  cast  it  into  the  river.  This  is  a  brief  notice 
of  the  ceremonies  of  the  daily  bathing,  but  there  are 
others  far  more  tedious,  which  the  Brahmins  observe 
at  certain  times,  in  the  worship  of  the  sun,  or  during 
certain  festivals  when  the  planets  are  in  conjunction 
with  other  heavenly  bodies,  or  during  eclipses  of  the 
sun  or  moon,  &c.  Next  to  the  morning  ablutions 
comes  the  idol  worship,  or  puja,  as  it  is  called.  There 
is  the  private  as  well  as  the  temple  puja.  The  puja 
at  the  temple  is  a  thing  that  requires  but  a  few  mo- 
ments. Worshippers  visit  the  temple  merely  to  make 
a  few  short  prayers  before  the  idols, — to  present  an 
offering  of  a  few  cowries,  or  rice  flowers,  &c,  and  to 
give  their  saldm.  Indeed,  heathen  temples,  unlike 
Christian  places  of  worship,  are  not  designed  to  ac- 
commodate any  but  the  idols.  The  interior  of  the 
building  usually  is  not  more  than  ten  or  twelve  feet 


TEMPLES     IN     INDIA. 


.-■- 


Page  94. 


HINDU    DEVOTION.  95 


square,  and  often  much  smaller,  so  that  the  worship- 
pers either  stand  -without,  or  crawl  in,  one  by  one,  for 
a  moment  to  lay  their  offering  before  the  idol.  But 
the  puja  which  a  Hindu,  and  particularly  a  Brahmin, 
performs  daily  at  his  own  house,  is  a  work  of  much 
more  time  and  pains.  Let  the  temperature  of  the  at- 
mosphere be  what  it  may,  he  is  obliged  to  strip  per- 
fectly naked,  with  the  exception  of  a  narrow  cloth 
around  his  loins.  Forming  a  sacred  circle  around  him 
he  sits  down  cross-legged  to  his  devotions.  If  he  be  a 
worshipper  of  Shiv,  he  places  before  him  an  image  of 
the  Ling,  mixes  up  paint  of  different  colours  with 
sandalwood,  &c,  which  he  applies,  with  the  aid  of  a 
small  looking-glass,  to  his  forehead,  arms,  and  breast. 
(The  emblem  of  this  deity  is  made  in  the  form  of  a 
trident,  by  perpendicular  streaks  on  the  centre  of  the 
forehead  and  just  above  the  nose ;  but  the  followers 
of  Vishnu  draw  lines  of  paint  across  the  forehead,  and 
by  this  means  it  is  easy  to  distinguish  to  what  god 
men  belong.)  He  next  takes  from  a  vessel  some  of 
the  holy  water  from  the  Ganges,  and  with  a  small 
spoon  pours  it  on  the  Ling.'  A  few  drops  of  the  same 
precious  element  are  then  thrown  down  the  throat,  and 
some  of  it  is  placed  on  the  forehead,  tips  of  the  ears,  &c. 
During  all  these  performances,  the  worshipper  fre- 
quently rings  a  small  bell,  and  mutters  prayers  and 
muntraz  from  the  Shasters,  counting  them  upon  his 
beads.  If  he  be  able  to  read,  he  chants  a  few  stanzas 
from  some  portion  of  their  sacred  books,  and  then 
closing  his  eyes,  and,  as  far  as  possible,  all  his  senses, 
he  meditates  on  Brahm,  by  trying  to  form  an  image 


96  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


of  this  abstract  existence  in  his  mind,  and  by  suppos- 
ing that  he  himself  is  a  part  of  the  great  Supreme ! 

But  it  must  be  observed  that  Hinduism  is  not  a  unit. 
It  embodies  within  its  pale  an  immense  number  of  sects, 
greatly  at  variance  with  each  other  in  sentiment,  modes 
of  worship,  objects  of  adoration,  and  in  spirit  and 
feeling ;  so  that  it  would  be  impossible  to  give  a  de- 
scription of  all  the  varieties  and  forms  in  which  the 
system  manifests  itself  in  the  practices  of  the  commu- 
nity. The  most  that  we  can  expect  to  accomplish  in 
such  a  brief  description  as  this,  is  merely  to  give  an 
idea  of  the  system  of  Hinduism,  as  a  whole,  and  as  it 
usually  presents  itself  to  the  eye  of  the  missionary, 
while  labouring  to  bring  such  blind  idolaters  to  a  know- 
ledge of  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus.  With  regard  to 
these  conflicting  sects,  it  would  be  an  endless  task  to  de- 
scribe them.  All  that  we  propose,  is  simply  to  mention 
a  few,  as  a  specimen  of  the  whole,  with  some  of  their 
peculiarities,  and  as  these  sects  are  generally  considered 
to  consist  of  men  of  superior  sanctity,  their  character 
and  conduct  will  be  a  pretty  good  exponent  of  the 
whole  system  of  Hinduism.  We  have  met  with  many 
of  them  during  our  visits  to  the  great  mela  at  Hardwdr, 
where  they  usually  assemble  in  vast  bodies,  and  exhi- 
bit all  their  peculiarities  without  disguise,  and  where 
they  manifest  such  hostility  toward  each  other,  that  a 
company  of  soldiers  is  necessary  to  prevent  the  effusion 
of  human  blood. 

Among  these  sects*  are  the  Sauras,  who  give  par- 
ticular worship  to  the  sun.     The  Rama  Nujas  address 


*  We  avail  ourselves  of  Professor  Wilson's  notice  of  the  Hindu 
sects. 


HINDU    SECTS.  97 


their  worship  particularly  to  Vishnu  and  Lakshnii  and 
their  various  incarnations,  and  are  decidedly  hostile  to 
the  Shiva  sects.  The  Rdma-tvats  profess  to  be  liberated 
from  the  fetters  which  bind  the  other  sects ;  they  wor- 
ship the  salagram  stone  and  the  tulsi  plant,  and  inces- 
santly repeat  the  name  of  Kdm.  The  Kabir-Panthis 
with  great  boldness  assail  and  ridicule  the  whole  system 
of  Hindu  worship  as  now  practised.  The  Khakis  are 
so  called  on  account  of  their  rubbing  their  bodies  all 
over  with  ashes.  They  go  about  almost  naked,  and 
lead  a  wandering  life.  The  Virdktas  go  bareheaded, 
and  must  have  but  one  garment  and  one  water-pot. 
The  Rhudra  Sampradayes  or  the  Cfossains,  are  a 
wealthy  and  influential  class,  and  very  proud  of  their 
distinction;  they  worship  Krishna  and  his  mistress, 
particularly  in  their  juvenile  forms.  The  Sakhi 
Bhdvas  worship  Radha,  the  mistress  of  Krishna,  so 
exclusively,  that  in  order  to  show  their  great  attach- 
ment to  her,  all  the  males  preposterously  assume,  not 
only  the  female  garb  and  ornaments,  but  also  their 
manners  and  occupations !  The  Sunydsls  are  a  class 
of  sturdy  beggars,  who  profess  to  have  abandoned  the 
world  and  perfectly  overcome  all  their  passions.  They 
lead  an  ascetic  life  and  live  on  alms.  The  Virdgis 
are  said  to  be  devoid  of  all  passion.  They  profess 
perpetual  poverty  and  continence,  and  move  about 
wherever  they  please.  The  greater  number  observe 
no  form  of  worship  whatever.  Ignorance  and  impu- 
dence appear  to  be  their  characteristics.  We  always 
found  them  to  be  the  most  noisy  and  troublesome  per- 
sons at  idolatrous  melas.  ■  The  Ndgds  arc  of  the  same 
class  with  the  Sunydsis,  but  they  depart  still  further 


98  MISSIONS   IN    HINDUSTAN. 


from  ordinary  decency,  and,  as  their  name  imports', 
they  go  quite  naked.  Of  all  classes  they  are  the  most 
■worthless  and  profligate.  They  smear  their  bodies 
with  ashes,  and  allowing  their  hair  to  grow  long,  wear 
it  braided  in  a  vast  mass  around  their  heads  like  a  tur- 
ban. When  travelling  they  carry  arms,  and  are  not 
unwilling  to  engage  in  sanguinary  conflicts.  It  was  in 
an  affray  between  the  Viragi  Nagas  and  the  Saiva 
Nagas,  which  took  place  at  Hardwar  in  former  years, 
that  eighteen  thousand  of  the  former  are  said  to  have 
been  left  dead  on  the  field.  The  Ahdlis  are  a  bloody 
band  who  go  about  fully  armed.  They  carry  the  dis- 
cus on  their  heads,  and  can  use  it  with  great  dexterity. 
Ranjit  Sing,  the  late  Emperor  of  the  Panjalb,  had  num- 
bers of  them  in  his  army,  and  it  has  been  stated  that  he 
was  in  such  dread  of  them,  that  he  was  often  compelled 
to  comply  with  their  demands.  The  Jogis  are  a  kind 
of  religious  mountebanks.  They  mark  the  forehead 
with  transverse  lines  of  ashes,  and  smear  the  body 
with  the  same.  They  usually  go  about  exhibiting  a 
goat  or  monkey,  which  they  teach  to  perform  numerous 
tricks.  Their  religion  consists  in  sitting  in  eighty-four 
different  attitudes,  in  directing  the  eyes  to  the  tip  of  the 
nose,  and,  by  mental  abstraction,  endeavouring  to  effect 
a  union  between  the  vital  spirit  in  the  body,  and  that 
which  pervades  all  nature.  When  this  union  is  effected, 
the  Jogi  supposes  that  he  is  liberated  from  the  clog 
of  material  encumbrance,  and  acquires  perfect  com- 
mand over  all  worldly  substance !  The  Ling a-w ants 
wear  a  representation  of  that  vile  symbol,  the  ling,  as 
an  ornament,  and  smear  their  faces  with  ashes.  They 
go  about  seeking  alms,  for  which  they  exhibit  a  small 


HINDU    SECTS. 


99 


Brahmini  bull,  as  an  emblem  of  Nundi  the  bull  of  Siva, 
decorated  -with  strings  of  cowries  or  shells.  The  Para 
Mahansa  are  a  class  who  pretend  to  be  indifferent  to 
pleasure  or  pain,  to  be  incapable  of  want,  and  insen- 
sible to  cold  or  heat.  In  proof  of  this,  they  go  naked 
in  all  weathers,  never  speak  and  never  beg.  In  all 
respects  they  appear  almost  as  helpless  as  infants. 
The  Aghoris  are  worshippers  of  Devi  in  some  of  her 
most  dreadful  forms ;  and  for  this  worship  human  vic- 
tims are  rerpiired.  The  sect  has  in  a  great  measure 
been  suppressed,  but  the  disgusting  members  that  still 
remain  are  greatly  feared  and  detested.  To  render 
themselves  as  frightsome  as  possible,  they  carry  a  pole 
with  a  shoe,  a  Avater-pot,  a  skull  and  human  bones 
fastened  on  the  top.  They  eat  carrion  or  filth  of  any 
kind  that  falls  in  their  way;  they  rub  their  bodies 
over  with  filth  that  they  may  be  the  more  disgusting, 
and  carry  in  their  hand  a  wooden  cup  or  skull  filled 
with  ordure,  to  throw  upon  those  who  will  not  comply 
with  their  demands.  Should  this  fail,  they  inflict 
wounds  upon  themselves,  that  the  guilt  of  blood  may 
rest  upon  the  heads  of  the  recusants.  The  Nakhis 
are  a  class  who,  more  than  others,  believe  in  the  great 
merit  and  efficacy  of  personal  privation  and  torture. 
Hence  they  will  distort  their  limbs  by  forcing  them 
out  of  the  natural  position.  Sometimes  they  hold 
their  arms  above  their  heads  for  years,  until  losing  all 
vital  influence,  they  wither  away  to  skin  and  bone,  and 
can  never  be  brought  down  again.  Some  will  clench 
tin'  fist,  with  a  determination  never  to  open  it,  and  the 
nail-  being  thus  allowed  to  grow,  finally  make  their 
way  through  the  metacarpal  bones,  and  pass  out  for 


100  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


several  inches  at  the  back  of  the  hand.  The  Bhaktas 
or  DaJcshinas,  are  the  right-hand  worshippers ;  and  the 
Vamacharis  the  left-hand  worshippers.  The  rites  of 
the  latter,  according  to  the  Tantras,  are  too  vile  to  be 
made  public.  They  require  the  use  of  five  things  in 
their  worship,  viz  :  "  Flesh,  fish,  wine,  women,  and  cer- 
tain mystical  gesticulations."  In  their  worship  of 
Salcti,  the  utmost  secrecy  is  enjoined.  It  takes  place 
at  midnight,  in  mixed  society,  and  terminates  in  orgies 
too  scandalous  and  impure  to  admit  of  being  described. 
We  close  this  account  of  the  Hindu  sects,  having  to 
pass  over  hundreds  equally  disgusting  and  depraved, 
with  the  notice  of  two  others  devoted  to  the  service  of 
the  goddess  Kali.  The  one  is  given  to  robbery  and 
the  other  to  murder;  and  both  take  Kdli  as  their 
patroness.  The  former,  after  offering  bloody  sacrifice 
to  the  goddess,  to  secure  safety  and  success,  and  wor- 
shipping the  instruments  by  which  they  are  to  effect  an 
entrance  into  the  houses  to  be  plundered,  set  out  in 
the  undertaking  with  a  courage  and  resolution  not  to 
be  overcome  by  any  difficulties  that  may  lie  in  their 
way ;  and  when  success  has-  been  obtained,  they  fail 
not  to  pay  their  vows  and  make  offering  of  the  spoils. 
The  other  sect  are  the  Thugs  ;  and  who  has  not  heard 
of  the  Thugs  of  India  ?  They  are  a  band  of  profes- 
sional murderers,  who  pretend  to  derive  their  laws  and 
regulations  from  the  sanguinary  goddess;  to  act  ac- 
cording to  her  authority,  and  for  her  special  honour 
and  advantage.  None  are  more  devout  and  regular 
in  their  worship,  or  more  faithful  in  the  discharge  of 
the  sacred  duties  they  have  undertaken.  With  the 
utmost  calmness  and  deliberation  they  proceed  to  the 


HINDU    SECTS.  101 


•work  of  death,  and  then  hold  up  the  hands  that  are 
still  reeking  with  the  life  blood  of  their  victims,  in 
giving  thanks  to  her  Avho  has  given  them  success ! 
Under  former  dynasties  their  operations  were  most 
extensive,  and  they  had  become  the  terror  of  the  whole 
community ;  and  so  secretly  did  they  carry  on  their 
nefarious  purposes,  that,  until  lately,  they  eluded  all 
the  efforts  that  were  made  for  their  detection.  We 
are  happy  to  say  that  within  the  last  few  years  the 
government  of  India  have  succeeded,  almost  entirely, 
in  rooting  out  of  the  land  this  bloody  fraternity,  some 
of  -whom  declared  with  their  dying  breath,  that  if  they 
had  been  faithful  to  Kali,  she  would  never  have  per- 
mitted them  to  be  ensnared,  or  their  craft  to  be  broken 
up  !  What  a  system  then  is  Hinduism,  not  only  as  it 
respects  the  abstract  theory  which  is  found  in  the 
Shasters,  but  the  practices  of  all  these  sects  which  it 
sanctions.  Gladly  would  we  draw  the  veil  of  oblivion 
over  all  these  abominations  ;  but  alas  !  this  would  be  a 
vain  attempt,  as,  at  the  present  hour,  they  still  live 
and  work  and  spread  in  their  native  soil ;  and,  unless 
a  pure  gospel,  accompanied  by  the  influences  of  the 
Spirit  of  God,  counteract  and  remove  them,  they  will 
continue  to  spread  and  triumph  in  the  everlasting  de- 
struction of  India's  benighted  millions.  These  sects, 
to  which  we  have  so  briefly  referred,  are  only  a  speci- 
men of  those  which  flourish  luxuriantly  under  the  wing 
of  the  Hindu  religion.  All  of  them,  however  corrupt 
in  sentiment  or  in  practice,  profess  to  act  under  the 
authority  of  their  sacred  books,  and  to  aim  at  one  ob- 
ject, and  that  is,  "to  shuffle  off*  this  mortal  coil,"  to 
get  rid  of  the  fetters  that  bind  them  to  existence,  and 


'.• 


102  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


finally  to  lose  that  existence  by  an  absorption  in  the 
unconscious  Brahm !  For  this  purpose  some  follow 
one  way  and  some  another.  Some  try  to  root  out 
every  passion  from  the  soul, — to  reduce,  as  it  were, 
all  the  sensibilities  of  the  human  heart  to  a  state  of 
petrifaction,  and  entirely  to  extirpate  the  feelings 
which  the  Creator,  for  the  wisest  of  purposes,  has 
planted  in  the  bosom ;  and  this  they  hope  to  effect  by 
the  kind  of  devotions  we  have  described.  Others  sup- 
pose that  austerities  of  the  most  severe  description  will 
be  effectual  in  raising  them  to  the  rank  for  which  they 
aspire.  Hence,  in  addition  to  the  penances  and  morti- 
fications we  have  already  enumerated,  some  bury  them- 
selves in  the  earth,  (leaving  a  small,  but  almost  imper- 
ceptible hole  through  which  they  breathe,)  with  the 
design  of  making  the  multitude  believe  they  can  live 
without  air,  and  that  the  thing  is  a  miracle.  This  we 
have  ourselves  witnessed  and  detected.  Some  clothe 
themselves  in  the  skins  of  wild  beasts,  and  retire  to 
the  forest  to  live  on  herbs  and  roots.  Others  chain 
themselves  to  trees,  and  if  not  fed  by  the  superstitious 
people,  perish  from  hunger.  Some  suspend  themselves 
by  the  feet  to  the  branches  of  the  sacred  pipil  or  ban- 
yan. Others  stand  in  water  to  the  neck  several  hours 
every  day  for  years.  Some  scotch  themselves  on 
beds  of  iron  spikes.  Others  roast  themselves  amidst 
five  fires, — that  is,  four  blazing  around,  and  a  tropical 
sun  overhead.  Some  again,  in  making  a  long  pilgrim- 
age, measure  the  whole  distance  with  their  bodies. 
But  enough  of  this.  Enough  certainly  to  expose  the 
errors,  absurdities,  and  delusions  of  Hinduism.  Will 
not  the   picture,  though  much   less   dark   than   the 


HINDU    SECTS.  103 


original,  affect  the  hearts  of  Christians,  and  stir  them 
up  to  do  more  than  they  have  ever  done,  to  evangelize 
benighted  and  degraded  India,  to  overthrow  and  uproot 
a  system  of  idolatry  so  gross  and  delusive,  and  firmly 
to  resolve  never  to  cease  their  efforts,  until  all  their 
idols  shall  be  thrown  away,  and  crumble  into  dust. 

"Shall  we,  whose  souls  are  lighted 

With  wisdom  from  on  high ; 
Shall  we  to  men  benighted, 

The  lamp  of  life  deny? 
Salvation,  0,  salvation ! 

The  joyful  sound  proclaim, 
Till  earth's  remotest  nation 

Has  learn'd  Messiah's  name." 


104  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


CHAPTER  V. 

Discouragements  to  missionary  labour — Difficulties  should  be 
known  by  the  church — Number  of  strange  languages  spoken — 
Difficult  of  acquisition — A  Christian  and  scientific  literature  to 
be  created — Progress  made  in  translations — Much  still  to  be 
done — Ignorance  and  prejudice  of  the  people — Printing  but 
little  known — Native  books — Paucity  of  readers — Opposition  of 
the  priests  to  Christian  education — Bigotry — Self-righteousness 
— Caste — Brahminical  influence — Female  degradation — Moral 
depravity  of  the  community — Idolatry  and  heathen  rites — • 
Grounds  of  encouragement. 

Those  who  have  attentively  perused  the  foregoing 
chapter,  or  are  even  tolerably  acquainted  with  the  pe- 
culiar construction  of  the  Hindu  religion,  and  of  its 
workings  in  the  minds  of  its  votaries,  and  in  society  at 
large,  cannot  fail  to  observe  that  innumerable  and 
formidable  difficulties  oppose  themselves  to  the  spread 
of  the  gospel  in  Hindustan.  But,  however  forcibly 
this  obvious  fact  may  strike  the  reader,  we  presume 
there  are  few,  even  of  those  who  take  a  deep  interest 
in  this  subject,  who  are  sufficiently  impressed  with  the 
nature  and  extent  of  these  difficulties,  or  contemplate 
them  sufficiently,  when  making  attempts  to  disseminate 
Christianity  among  the  Hindus.  This  dark  and  dis- 
couraging side  of  the  picture,  persons  of  a  sanguine 
temperament  are  unwilling  to  examine.  They  would 
rather  hear  of  opening,  brightening  prospects,  and  of 
great  and  glorious  success ;  and  when  such  success  is 


NUMBER   OF    LANGUAGES.  105 


not  speedily  manifest,  such  persons,  without  a  know- 
ledge of  these  difficulties,  become  sadly  discouraged, 
and,  it  not  unfrequently  happens,  not  only  lose  their 
zeal  in  the  cause,  but  at  length  begin  to  think  that  the 
whole  is  a  hopeless  undertaking.  To  guard  against 
such  a  state  of  feeling,  it  is  proposed  in  this  chapter  to 
present  before  the  reader,  in  as  striking  a  light  as 
posssible,  some  of  the  difficulties  which  missionaries  in 
India  have  to  encounter,  and,  as  a  contrast  to  these, 
to  hint  at  some  of  the  grounds  of  encouragement,  from 
which  they  are  led  to  expect  finally  complete  and  tri- 
umphant success  in  their  labours.  The  church  of  God, 
whose  business  it  is  to  prosecute  the  work  of  missions, 
should  be  well  acquainted  with  the  difficulties  connected 
with  it,  in  order  to  keep  her  from  being  too  sanguine 
of  immediate  victory,  and  to  call  forth,  in  a  proper  de- 
gree, her  energies  and  her  prayers;  while  on  the 
other  hand,  she  should  contemplate  the  grounds  of 
hope,  in  order  to  inspire  her  with  courage  and  zeal 
worthy  of  so  great  and  glorious  a  cause. 

1.  The  first  difficulty  that  meets  us  in  attempting  to 
evangelize  the  Hindus,  arises  from  the  number  of 
strange  languages  spoken  by  the  people,  many  of  them 
different  both  in  characters  and  idiom.  Some  of  these 
languages  are  the  Sanscrit,  the  Hindi,  the  Bengali,  the 
M;iharatti,  the  Panjabi,  the  Tamul,  the  Teliigu,  the 
Canarese,  the  Persian,  the  Urdu,  &c.  The  difficulty  to 
a  foreigner  of  acquiring  any  one  of  these  languages,  so 
as  to  be  able  to  preach  the  gospel  in  it  both  fluently 
and  forcibly,  is  very  great;  especially  when  it  is  con- 
sidered that  to  do  so  efficiently,  special  regard  must  be 
paid  not  only  to  vocabulary  and  idiom,  but  to  accents, 


i  i 
i  ; 


106  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


and  tones,  and  gestures,  and  ideas,  and  feelings,  and 
trains  of  thought,  in  many  respects  altogether  different 
from  what  he  has  been  accustomed  to.  In  addition  to  all 
this,  his  situation  is  often  such,  that  in  order  to  reach 
the  whole  mass  of  the  people  for  whose  good  he  labours, 
the  missionary  is  obliged  to  learn  two  or  more  of  the 
languages  we  have  enumerated.  For  instance,  a  mis- 
sionary at  Lodiana,  should  be  acquainted  with  the 
Hindi,  Hindustani,  Panjabi,  Persian,  and  Cashmeri,  as 
all  these  languages  are  spoken  at  that  place.  In  this 
difficult  and  laborious  business,  it  may  be  that  his 
teachers  or  Munshis,  are  men  who,  either  know  no 
English  at  all,  or  at  best  so  little  of  our  language,  as 
still  to  be  unable  to  explain  the  peculiarities  of  these 
foreign  tongues.  The  newly  arrived  missionary,  there- 
fore, feels  like  a  person  wandering  in  an  unknown 
country,  where  all  around  appears  strange,  and  alto- 
gether unlike  to  any  thing  with  which  he  was  before 
acquainted.  When  he  first  attempts  to  communicate 
his  thoughts  to  the  people,  he  finds  that  they  have  not 
only  to  be  clothed  in  strange  words,  but  to  be  expressed 
in  a  strange  way  and  about  strange  things.  The  order 
of  the  sentences  seems  to  be  completely  inverted.  The 
subjects  on  which  he  converses  before  a  Hindu  audience 
are  in  a  great  measure  new ;  and  the  terms  to  be  em- 
ployed as  the  medium  of  thought,  must  be  used  fre- 
quently in  a  sense  so  wide  from  their  roots,  that  mere 
dictionary  definitions  would  give  but  little  idea  of  their 
meaning  in  certain  connections.  The  language,  there- 
fore, cannot  be  learned  well  from  books  alone.  A  fa- 
cility of  employing  words  and  phrases  in  their  proper 
connection,  is  better  acquired  by  mingling  with  the 


DIFFICULTY   IN   ACQUIRING   LANGUAGE.  107 


people,  and  discoursing  freely  on  all  subjects  of  gene- 
ral interest.  By  the  study  of  the  few  native  books 
that  are  to  be  found,  we  are  able  to  detect  what  is  low 
and  vulgar  in  the  spoken  living  language ;  and  by  at- 
tention to  the  conversation  of  the  common  people,  we 
find  out  the  extent  to  which  the  written  language  is 
understood  by  them,  or  to  what  degree  it  may  be  above 
their  comprehension.  For  all  this,  close  study  and 
observation,  on  the  part  of  the  missionary,  are  neces- 
sary not  only  for  years,  but  during  their  whole  lives. 
If,  on  arrival  at  his  field  of  labour,  the  attention  of  a 
missionary  be  not  much  occupied  in  secular  matters, 
such  as  building  houses,  superintending  schools,  &c, 
as  is  generally  the  case  at  the  commencement  of  a  mis- 
sion, he  may  find  himself  able  to  address  an  audience 
in  an  extemporary  discourse,  and  in  a  fluent  and  intel- 
ligent manner,  in  the  course  of  three  or  four  years ; 
but  at  the  end  of  twice  that  period,  he  will  be  still  a 
learner,  and  making  daily  improvement  in  the  languages 
and  dialects  of  Hindustan. 

But  the  difficulty  of  acquiring  the  language  of  the 
people  is  not  the  only  one  that  meets  the  missionaries 
on  their  arrival  in  India.  They  find  it  necessary  not 
only  to  simplify  the  language  they  employ  to  meet  the 
capacities  of  the  masses  of  the  people,  but  to  give  it, 
at  the  same  time,  such  a  style  and  polish  as  to  be  agree- 
able to  the  better  educated  classes ;  they  have  not  only 
to  compose  dictionaries  of  the  languages,  and  of  reli- 
gious and  scientific  terms,  but  they  have  actually  to 
prepare  a  theological  literature  for  the  people.  The 
languages  of  India  are  heathenish  as  well  as  the  people, 
and  both  must  be  converted  to  Christianity.     To  illus- 


108  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


trate  what  we  mean,  an  example  may  be  given.  When 
a  missionary  addresses  a  Hindu  audience,  and  has  oc- 
casion to  speak  of  an  atonement  for  sin,  the  only  words 
he  can  find  in  their  language,  in  reference  to  this  sub- 
ject, are  those  which  will  necessarily  convey  to  their 
minds  the  idea  of  slaying  animals  to  appease  their 
gods,  or  the  performance  of  acts  supposed  to  be  meri- 
torious, or  of  austerities  and  penances.  In  the  same 
way,  if  he  speak  of  holiness  in  their  terms  and  without 
explanation  or  circumlocution,  he  conveys  the  idea  of 
something  acquired  by  the  man  who  has  forsaken  the 
duties  of  life,  and  voluntarily  endured  all  the  privations 
of  an  ascetic.  And  if  he  direct  their  attention  to 
heaven  as  the  home  of  the  Christian,  they  will  most 
certainly  associate  with  the  word  ideas  altogether  dif- 
ferent from  what  it  conveys  to  our  minds,  as  they  con- 
sider absorption  or  non-existence  as  the  highest  degree 
of  bliss  to  which  they  can  aspire !  Hence,  in  commu- 
nicating to  Hindu  minds  the  grand  truths  of  the 
gospel — truths  that,  until  lately,  were  unknown  and 
unthought  of  in  that  heathen  land — it  is  constantly 
necessary  to  make  explanations  of  the  terms  used  in 
such  cases,  or  to  combine  them  with  others,  so  as  to 
show  the  peculiar  sense  which  we  attach  to  them.  The 
imparting,  in  this  way,  of  ideas  and  sentiments  that 
are  both  new  and  novel  to  the  heathen,  is  a  task  more 
arduous  than  any  one  can  imagine  who  has  never  made 
the  trial,  and  therefore  a  difficulty  of  no  ordinary  mag- 
nitude to  the  missionary  in  India. 

But,  in  addition  to  the  work  of  imbuing  the  languages 
of  India  with  pure  and  correct  sentiments  and  ideas, 
we  have  said,  that  on  the  missionary  devolves  the  im- 


BOOKS   TRANSLATED.  109 


portant  and  highly  responsible  duty  of  creating  a  Chris- 
tian and  scientific  literature  for  the  people.  During 
the  last  ten  or  twelve  years,  considerable  progress  has 
been  made  in  this  department  of  labour.  When  we 
arrived  in  Northern  India,  in  1836,  there  were,  we  may 
say,  no  books  of  a  scientific  character  in  the  Hindi  or 
Urdu  languages  suitable  to  introduce  into  vernacular 
schools,  and  the  only  religious  books  available  in  the 
Urdu,  were  about  a  dozen  of  small  tracts,  the  New 
Testament,  and  a  few  of  the  books  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment. The  translation  of  the  New  Testament  had 
been  made  by  Henry  Martin,  who  introduced  many 
Persian  words  into  it,  in  order  to  render  the  style  more 
agreeable  to  the  educated  classes,  and  thus  it  was  in  a 
great  measure  placed  beyond  the  comprehension  of  the 
common  people.  In  Hindi  the  Scriptures  were  trans- 
lated by  Mr.  Bowley,  and  besides  these,  there  were 
about  ten  small  tracts  published  by  the  Society  in  Cal- 
cutta. As  a  result  of  the  labours  of  missionaries,  and 
private  Christians,  and  School  Book  Societies  since  that 
time,  it  may  be  stated,  that  the  whole  of  the  Scriptures 
has  been  translated  into  Urdu,  the  New  Testament 
several  times,  and  several  editions  have  been  printed 
and  circulated  in  a  style  that  may  be  understood  by 
all.  Tracts,  amounting  to  several  volumes,  have  been 
prepared  and  printed  by  our  own  missions  in  the  north- 
west, to  say  nothing  of  what  has  been  done  by  the 
London  Missions  at  Banaras,  Mirzapur,  and  Calcutta. 
The  greater  part  of  the  New  Testament  also,  and  a  largo 
number  of  tracts  have  been  translated  into  the  Panjabi 
language  by  the  Bev.  J.  Newton  of  Lodiana,  and  these 
have  been  extensively  distributed  among  the  Sikhs,  who 

10 


110  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


had  previously  no  other  means  of  becoming  acquainted 
with  Christianity.  The  Agra  School  Book  Society, 
and  the  Calcutta  Christian  School  Book  Society,  have 
now  a  large  list  of  books  suitable  for  vernacular  schools, 
and  the  work  of  translation  is  going  on  in  all  quarters, 
with  as  much  spirit  and  rapidity,  as  in  the  power  of  the 
few  on  whom  the  work  devolves.  Missionaries,  there- 
fore, who  now  arrive  in  the  country,  find  much  prepa- 
ratory work  accomplished  and  ready  to  then*  hands ; 
and,  as  a  consequence,  are  the  sooner  prepared  to  enter 
on  their  labours  with  efficiency.  So  much,  however, 
still  remains  to  be  done,  in  all  these  departments,  that 
the  great  work  of  imbuing  the  languages  of  Hindustan 
with  the  genius  of  Christian  sentiment,  and  thus  quali- 
fying them  more  perfectly  for  the  expression  of  gospel 
truth,  and  of  opening  up  to  the  inquiring  minds  of  the 
Hindus  the  vast  treasures  of  European  literature,  by 
translations  into  the  vernaculars,  may  be  said  to  have 
but  commenced,  and  to  carry  it  on  to  completion,  many 
able  and  devoted  men  will  be  required.  Some  valuable 
assistance  in  these  labours  may  be  expected  by  and  by, 
from  the  educated  native  Christian  society  that  is  grow- 
ing up  in  connection  with  the  mission  stations  scattered 
over  that  dark  land. 

2.  The  deplorable  ignorance  and  stubborn  preju- 
dices of  the  Hindus,  together  with  their  pride  of  reli- 
gion and  self-righteous  spirit,  are  all  serious  difficulties 
in  the  ivay  of  the  spread  of  the  gospel  amongst  them. 
Although  the  Hindus  are  to  a  considerable  degree  a 
civilized  people,  it  must  have  been  remarked  that  many 
of  their  religious  rites  and  practices  are  the  most  bar- 
barous that  could  well  be  imagined.    Thanks,  under  Pro- 


KNOWLEDGE   TRADITIONAL.  Ill 


vidence,  to  that  noble  and  humane  individual,  Lord 
Bentinck,  that  the  Sutti,  the  sacrifice  of  the  young  and 
the  aged,  and  all  other  acts  of  wilful  murder,  under 
the  plea  of  religion,  have  been  prohibited,  and  are  now 
classed  under  the  catalogue  of  criminal  offences.     This 
was  a  grand  demonstration  of  the  power  of  Christian 
principle  over  the  time-serving  policy  that  had  been 
previously  pursued  in  regard  to  such  practices,  by  the 
rulers  of  the  country ;  and  it  was  a  first  and  important 
step  toward  the  breaking  up  of  the  entire  system  of 
bloody  rites  to  which  the  people  cling  with  such  te- 
nacity.    It  has  inflicted  a  wound  on  Hinduism  which 
will  never  be  healed,  and  was  only  the  precursor,  we 
trust,  of  many  more  important  changes,   and  of  the 
final  demolition  of  the  mighty  fabric  of  idolatry  and 
superstition  that  has  existed  for  so  many  centuries  in 
India.     The  minds  of  the  Hindus  are  active,  ingenious, 
and  acute,  and,  in  general,  not  uninformed  on  all  the 
leading  topics   contained  in    their   own   mythological 
writings :  but  then,  these  contain  such  a  medley  of 
fiction  and  folly,  of  extravagance  and  absurdity,  and 
of  every  thing,  on  a  large  scale,  that  is  marvellous  and 
calculated  to  outrage  human  credence,  that  no  true  or 
practical  knowledge  is  gained  from  this  source.     Such 
absurd  and  chimerical  ideas  only  bewilder  the  mind, 
and  unfit  it  for  sober  thought.     Besides  this,  the  reli- 
gious knowledge  possessed  by  the  great  body  of  the 
people  is  nearly  all  traditional,  or  obtained  at  second- 
hand.    The  study  of  the  Shasters  is  entirely  committed 
to  the  Brahmins,  and  the  severest  penalties  are  threat- 
cued  if  any  of  the  other  classes  should  presume  to  com- 
mit the  sacrilegious  act  of  reading  them  in  the  sacred 


:m 


112  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


language  of  the  Sanscrit.  The  lowest  castes  are  not 
even  permitted  to  touch  them,  or  to  hear  them  read ! 
Until  the  English  penetrated  the  country,  the  art  of 
printing  was  unknown ;  and  even  to  this  day,  with  few 
exceptions,  all  native  books  are  written  by  the  hand. 
The  whole  catalogue  of  native  books,  however,  if  we 
omit  the  Shasters,  might  be  easily  given.  They  con- 
sist of  a  few  works  of  fiction,  quaint  sayings,  fables, 
&c,  and  these  are  the  only  school-books  in  use.  It 
may  be  remarked  also,  that  except  in  schools,  but  few 
of  the  people  ever  think  of  reading  at  all,  or  of  read- 
ing on  account  of  the  intellectual  gratification  it  affords ; 
a  thing  certainly  not  to  be  wondered  at,  as  their  books 
contain  so  little  that  is  either  profitable  or  interesting ; 
and  then,  the  pupils  in  schools,  scarcely  ever  suppos- 
ing it  practicable  to  learn  to  read  alone,  depend  almost 
entirely  on  the  Munshi,  or  teacher,  to  read  before 
them,  and  explain  the  meaning.  On  this  account  it 
is  not  uncommon  to  hear  those  who  profess  to  be 
scholars  say,  We  cannot  read  your  books  because  we 
have  not  been  taught  them !  In  some  places  not  more 
than  one  in  every  twenty  of  the  community  can  read 
at  all,  and  a  very  small  proportion  of  this  number  can 
read  with  any  tolerable  degree  of  fluency  and  under- 
standing. Multitudes  whom  we  have  met  in  villages, 
were  in  a  most  lamentable  state  of  ignorance  about  the 
most  simple  and  primary  truths  that  lie  at  the  founda- 
tion of  all  religion,  nor  could  they  understand  the  na- 
ture of  our  message,  however  plainly  communicated. 
Many  with  whom  we  have  conversed,  did  not  know 
they  had  a  soul,  or  that  there  is  a  God,  or  a  judgment, 
or  a  heaven,  or  a  hell !     Yet,  even  such  persons,  desti- 


IGNORANCE   AND    PREJUDICE.  113 


tute  as  they  are  of  any  religious  principles  of  their 
own,  are  full  of  superstition  and  prejudice  against  the 
truth  of  the  gospel,  and  exceedingly  fearful  lest,  like 
the  Mohammedans,  when  they  conquered  Hindustdn, 
we  should  force  our  religion  upon  them,  or  by  some 
means  draw  them  away  from  the  religion  of  their 
fathers.  This  religion,  they  tell  us,  whatever  it  was, 
is  good  enough  for  them,  and  in  it  they  wish  to  live 
and  die.  Fearful  that  our  doctrines  may  leaven  so- 
ciety and  corrupt  their  ancient  faith,  all  our  efforts  to 
enlighten  and  evangelize  them  are  carefully  watched, 
and  thwarted  if  possible.  The  Brahmins  being  the 
men  most  interested  in  keeping  the  people  in  igno- 
rance, are  always  the  most  forward  in  such  matters, 
and  their  dictum  cannot  be  opposed  by  the  deluded 
people,  who  suppose  that  much  of  their  fate  is  in  the 
hands  of  their  religious  teachers.  But,  ignorant  as 
the  people  are  in  regard  to  their  own  religion,  they 
are  filled  with  bigotry  and  self-conceit.  They  look 
upon  Hinduism  as  par  excellence  far  more  ancient 
and  more  magnificent  than  any  other  religion,  and  as 
having  been  given  expressly  for  themselves,  and  ex- 
actly suited  to  their  circumstances  and  wants.  Where 
so  much  pride  and  complacency  exist,  and  men  seem 
so  perfectly  satisfied  with  their  condition,  the  simple 
and  humbling  doctrines  of  the  gospel  have  but  little 
attraction.  Self-righteousness  is  the  pivot  on  which 
the  whole  theory  and  practice  of  Hinduism  turn.  To 
work  out  a  righteousness  of  his  own,  and  to  compensate 
by  his  sufferings  for  his  past  transgressions,  the  poor 
Hindu  is  directed  to  the  practice  of  innumerable  rites 
and  ceremonies,  and  fastings  and  ablutions,  and  self* 


i'i 


114  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


inflicted  tortures,  and  pilgrimages,  and  repetitions  of 
the  name  of  Ram  and  Krishna,  and  worshipping  of 
senseless  idols,  and  the  making  of  expiations  by  sacri- 
fices and  offerings,  and,  it  may  be,  by  the  horrid  rites 
of  self-immolation.  These  performed,  the  Hindu  looks 
upon  himself  as  beyond  the  grade  of  common  mortals, 
as  having  reached  the  rank  of  the  Supreme  himself, 
and  as  such  a  being,  he  is  worshipped  by  thousands. 
To  convince  the  savages  of  the  Pacific,  who  had  lost 
all  confidence  in  their  idols,  or  the  degraded  but 
simple-hearted  Hottentots  of  Africa,  that  they  were 
great  sinners,  and  needed  an  Almighty  Saviour,  would, 
humanly  speaking,  be  an  easy  task ;  but  to  bring  the 
ignorant,  the  bigoted,  and  the  self-righteous  Hindu, 
who  is  rooted  and  grounded  in  error  and  steeped  in 
pollution,  and  then  chained  by  custom  and  caste  to  the 
position  he  occupies,  is  nothing  short  of  a  moral  mira- 
cle ;  it  is  like  tearing  up  from  the  soil,  in  which  it  has 
flourished  for  more  than  a  thousand  years,  the  banyan 
— the  monarch  of  the  Indian  jungle,  with  its  hundreds 
of  trunks,  and  tens  of  hundreds  of  spreading  roots; 
but  it  is  a  miracle  which  that  glorious  gospel,  which  is 
the  wisdom  and  power  of  God  to  salvation,  can  effect. 
Although  in  the  estimation  of  the  world's  wisdom,  the 
preaching  of  this  gospel  to  such  men  may  seem  fool- 
ishness, yet,  acting  under  the  authority  of  the  King  of 
Zion,  the  missionary  is  not  discouraged.  He  employs 
the  means  of  Divine  appointment  in  confident  hope 
that  they  will  be  successful.  "  The  weapons  of  our 
warfare  are  not  carnal,  but  mighty  through  God  to  the 
pulling  down  of  strongholds.  Casting  down  imagina- 
tions and  every  high  thing  that  exalteth  itself  against 


OBSTACLE  FROM  CASTES.  115 


the  knowledge  of  God,   and  bringing  into   captivity 
every  thought  to  the  obedience  of  Christ." 

8.    The  entire  construction  and  state  of  society  in 
India,  are  such,  as  to  present  fearful  obstacles  to  the 
amelioration  of  its  condition,  and  the  spread  of  Chris- 
tianity.   Every  one  has  heard  of  the  castes  of  India,  but 
few,  who  have  not  witnessed  the  practical  workings  of 
the  system,  are  at  all  aware  of  the  evils  which  it  inflicts 
on  society  and  individuals,  or  the    immense  barriers 
which  it  so  effectually  raises  up  against  the  spread  of 
truth,  and  the  exercise  of  all  the  finest  and  best  feelings 
of  human  nature.     This  antisocial  system,  divides  the 
whole  Hindu  people  into  distinct  races  and  tribes,  and 
effectually  separates  them  from  intercourse  with  each 
other,  and  from  people  of  every  other  nation  under  hea- 
ven.    Claiming  to  be  of  divine  appointment,  it  throws, 
as  it  were,  a  wall  of  partition  around  every  division  and 
sub-division  of  the  Hindu  family,  so  as  to  close,  and 
seal  up  for  ever,  all  the  avenues  of  social  intercourse, 
and  to  prevent  the  interchange  of  all  the  kind  offices  of 
humanity  and  benevolence.     And  what  is  most  to  be 
lamented,  it  more  probably  than  all  things  else,  pre- 
vents the  missionary  of  the  gospel  from  carrying  out 
as  he  would  wish,  his  benevolent  plans  for  their  tem- 
poral and  spiritual  welfare.     It  keeps  him  at  such  a 
distance  from  the  people  for  whose  good  he  labours, 
that  his  influence  is  comparatively  but  little  felt.     To 
them  he  seems  like  a  barbarian,  and  they  remain  like 
barbarians  to  him.     They  regard  him  as  of  an  unclean 
race,  with  whom  they  must  on  no  account,  cither  eat 
or  drink,  or  form  any  intimate  relation.     All  the  in- 
fluence which  a  minister  of  the  gospel  gains  in  Chris- 


116  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


tian  lands  for  the  promotion  of  religion  among  his 
people,  by  living  among  them  as  a  friend,  by  the  inter- 
change of  kind  offices,  by  private  conversation  and 
social  intercourse — and  we  all  know  that  such  an  influ- 
ence is  not  small — is  all,  or  nearly  all  lost  to  the  mis- 
sionary labouring  in  Hindustan.  There  is  a  distinct 
line  of  demarcation  between  the  people  and  him,  which 
he  cannot  pass,  and  which,  in  a  great  measure,  prevents 
him  from  reaching  their  hearts,  or  of  making  that  im- 
pression on  their  minds  in  favour  of  Christianity  which 
he  ardently  desires.  To  the  mind  of  a  Hindu  there  is 
no  idea  more  preposterous,  or  more  opposed  to  all  the 
habits  and  feelings  he  has  imbibed  from  childhood,  or 
more  utterly  subversive  of  all  he  was  ever  taught  to 
do  or  believe,  as  in  accordance  with  the  system  of  laws 
and  ceremonies  that  was  handed  down  to  him  from  time 
immemorial  by  his  ancestors,  than  that  he  should  for  a 
moment  think  of  changing  his  religion,  and  of  embrac- 
ing one  which  explicitly  declares  that  "  God  made  of 
one  blood,  all  nations  of  men  to  dwell  on  the  face  of  the 
earth,"  and  proposes  to  destroy  all  distinctions  of  race, 
and  "to  unite  all  together  in  one  body  in  Christ;"  and 
of  associating  himself  with  those  of  another  nation, 
whom  he  views  almost  as  beings  of  another  species. 
When  viewed  in  this  light,  and  in  all  the  other  aspects 
in  which  this  subject  might  be  presented,  it  will  be  seen 
at  once,  that  caste  throws  innumerable  and  almost  in- 
surmountable difficulties  in  the  way  of  all  those,  whose 
minds  having  become  enlightened,  might  wish  to  get 
rid  of  the  grievous  bondage  it  entails,  and  join  them- 
selves to  the  Christian  church ;  it  rivets  the  chains  and 
shackles  under  which  former  generations  have  sighed 


OBSTACLE   FROM   CASTES.  117 


and  groaned;  and  it  peremptorily  enjoins,  that  no 
change,  no  improvement  on  past  usages,  no  inquiry 
after  truth,  shall  ever  be  made  by  the  Hindu !  Is  any 
one  bold  enough  to  disregard  public  opinion,  and  to 
break  through  all  these  restraints ;  and,  in  following 
his  own  convictions  of  duty,  to  make  a  good  confession 
before  many  witnesses  ?  Then  the  tameness  of  Hindu- 
ism is  roused  into  fury.  The  man's  greatest  enemies 
will  be  those  of  his  own  household.  If  he  be  a  minor, 
the  parental  authority  is  exercised  in  the  most  rigid 
manner.  He  is  beaten  and  imprisoned  in  some  dark 
corner  of  the  family  dwelling,  or  sent  to  some  distant 
place  to  reside  with  friends,  where  all  kinds  of  amuse- 
ment will  be  afforded  so  as  to  remove  serious  thoughts. 
Should  he  still  profess  himself  a  Christian,  and  refuse 
to  bow  before  the  idols,  the  father  has  been  known  to 
provide  a  paramour  for  his  son,  that  by  her  blandish- 
ments he  might  be  induced  to  commit  sin  and  defile 
his  conscience ;  and  when  this  has  proved  ineffectual, 
then  drugs  have  been  given  to  make  him  insane  for  life. 
This  is  a  light  affliction  to  the  family,  compared  with 
what  they  would  have  suffered  had  he  broken  his 
caste,  and  disgraced  all  his  relations  by  a  public  pro- 
fession of  Christianity.  But  if  a  convert  to  the  gospel 
be  of  age,  and  force  by  his  friends  be  not  permitted, 
he  is  tried  by  all  kinds  of  allurements,  promises,  and 
threatenings.  If  these  succeed  not,  he  is  at  once  and 
for  ever  disinherited  of  any  worldly  property  that  might 
fall  to  his  share.  If  he  be  a  married  man,  his  wife 
and  children  are  taken  from  him,  though  by  a  late  law 
passed  by  government,  he  may  now  claim  an  interview 
with  his  wife  in  the  presence  of  witnesses  to  ascertain 


118  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


if  she  be  forcibly  detained,  and  she  is  left  to  choose 
her  own  course  for  the  future.  If  he  be  in  business 
of  any  kind,  all  his  former  friends  and  customers  for- 
sake him,  and  henceforth,  he  is  considered  as  a  miser- 
able outcast  from  all  society,  and  a  just  object  of  scorn 
and  reproach.  Should  such  a  person,  in  due  time,  be 
thought  qualified  by  the  missionaries  to  preach  the 
gospel  to  his  benighted  countrymen,  not  only  the  same, 
but  in  some  respects,  much  greater  difficulties  will  lie 
in  the  way  of  his  influence  and  usefulness  than  those 
we  have  mentioned  in  regard  to  the  foreign  missionary. 
Hence  the  difficulties  that  from  this  subject  of  caste 
alone,  meet  us  on  all  hands.  They  are  indeed  so  for- 
midable, that  were  it  not  for  the  promises  and  power 
of  God  that  are  engaged  in  behalf  of  the  cause  which 
missionaries  are  labouring  to  promote,  they  might  well 
despair  of  success.  But  we  think  that  this  mighty 
obstacle  is  being  gradually  removed.  The  overt  de- 
partures from  the  strict  rules  of  caste,  are  now  so  com- 
mon and  notorious,  that  most  men  of  common  sense 
and  reflection  are  becoming  more  and  more  convinced, 
that  no  true  caste,  such  as  the  Shasters  enjoin,  exists 
in  the  present  age ;  and  that  the  whole  system,  cutting 
them  off  as  it  does  from  mutual  intercourse  with  other 
parts  of  the  world,  stands  directly  in  the  way  of  their 
national  improvement.  Yet,  strange  as  it  may  seem, 
those  who  make  all  these  acknowledgments,  are  still  so 
much  under  the  influence  of  caste  and  the  fear  of  man, 
that,  externally,  and  in  the  presence  of  others,  they 
will  cling  to  it  almost  with  as  much  pertinacity  as  ever. 
The  power  possessed  by  the  Brahmins  over  the  mul- 
titude, and  so  assiduously  employed  to  confirm  them 


POWER    OF   THE   BRAHMINS.  119 


in  caste,  and  to  strengthen  their  prejudices  against 
Christianity,  is  very  great.  This  influence  is  exerted 
over  every  Hindu  before  he  is  born;  it  follows  him 
through  every  period,  and  in  every  transaction  of  life ; 
and  it  is  supposed  to  have  a  most  direct  effect  upon  his 
future  destinies.  In  infancy,  childhood,  youth,  man- 
hood, old  age;  in  sickness,  health,. poverty,  or  pros- 
perity ;  in  short,  from  the  time  the  Hindu  becomes  a 
living  foetus  in  the  womb,  until  his  body  is  consumed 
on  the  funeral  pile,  and  his  ashes  are  committed  to  the 
Ganges,  and  all  the  funeral  rites  are  performed,  the 
Brahmin  or  Guru  has  him  and  his  spiritual  concerns, 
under  his  special  direction  and  control ;  and  from  this 
situation  it  is  impossible  for  him  to  escape  without  be- 
coming an  outcast  from  the  community,  and  an  object 
of  hatred  and  disgust  to  all  his  former  acquaintances 
and  connections.  We  rejoice  however  to  say,  that 
these  blind  guides  have  much  less  sway  in  the  commu- 
nity now  than  in  former  times ;  that  in  many  cases  the 
people  respect  them  in  appearance  only,  not  in  heart ; 
and  that  from  this  bigoted  class  of  the  Hindus,  appa- 
rently so  far  removed  from  the  reach  of  the  gospel,  it 
has  heretofore  had  its  full  proportion  of  success  in  their 
conversion  to  God.  Let  those  at  home  who  are  dispo- 
sed to  be  discouraged  in  the  missionary  enterprise,  on 
account  of  the  small  number  that  have  made  a  profes- 
sion of  Christianity,  and  who  are  always  comparing 
the  visible  success  of  the  missionary,  with  that  of  a 
minister  in  Christian  lands,  remember  that  in  India  the 
gospel  bus  to  surmount  difficulties  that  are  unknown  to 
them.  How  many,  we  might  ask,  of  those  who  are 
added  to  Christian  churches  in  the  United  States,  would 


120  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


have  made  a  public  profession,  in  the  face  of  all  the 
opposition  and  sacrifices  that  the  Hindu  convert  must 
necessarily  encounter  in  the  very  first  steps  of  the 
Christian  life? 

But  caste  and  Brahminical  influence  are  not  the  only 
things  in  the  construction  of  Hindu,  society,  that  op- 
pose the  efforts  of  missionaries.  There  are  also  many 
customs  which  we  might  name,  which  having  prevailed 
from  time  immemorial,  have  now  become  so  inveterate, 
and  so  fully  invested  with  all  the  authority  of  law,  that 
their  removal  seems  almost  impossible,  while  their  ex- 
istence presents  scarcely  less  serious  difficulties  to  the 
spread  of  the  gospel  than  caste  itself.  But  the  only 
one  of  these  to  which  we  shall  now  refer  is  that  of  fe- 
male society.  In  India,  as  we  have  already  mentioned, 
all  the  females  in  respectable  society  are  secluded  be- 
hind a  purdah  or  screen,  or  within  the  walls  of  a  zenana. 
The  origin  of  this  singular  custom  is  the  jealousy  which 
men  have  of  their  wives,  and  the  fear  that  should 
others  see  their  faces,  they  would  fall  in  love  with  them, 
and  by  some  means  or  other  seduce  them.  During 
the  long  reign  of  despotism  in  Hindustan,  and  espe- 
cially since  the  invasion  and  reign  of  the  lecherous 
Mohammedans,  there  were  doubtless  many  grounds  for 
these  fears,  but  at  present  they  are  in  a  great  measure 
without  foundation.  The  reason  that  is  now  given  for 
continuing  the  practice,  is  one  of  the  strongest  proofs 
of  the  evils  of  the  system,  that  is,  that  the  female  sex 
in  India,  being  so  ignorant  and  inexperienced,  would 
not  know  how  to  conduct  themselves  in  the  society  of 
men,  with  any  degree  of  prudence  and  discretion,  and 
that  they  would  thus  most  certainly  disgrace  their  hus- 


DEGRADATION    OF    HINDU    WOMEN. 


121 


bands.  Thus  the  cure  continues  to  propagate  the  dis- 
ease. It  is  impossible  for  a  Hindu  woman  to  become 
intelligent  or  polished,  so  long  as  she  is  kept  in  con- 
finement; and,  according  to  Hindu  reasoning,  she  must 
be  kept  in  seclusion  because  she  does  not  possess  those 
qualifications  which  it  was  impossible  for  her  to  acquire ! 
The  real  state  of  the  case  however  is,  that  the  whole 
system  of  female  degradation  has  its  origin  in  the 
Shasters.  There  men  are  taught  to  look  upon  woman, 
not  only  as  "the  weaker  vessel,"  but  as  of  an  inferior 
grade  among  human  beings,  as  the  slaves  of  their  hus- 
bands, or  lords,  as  they  are  called,  and  as  totally  un- 
fitted for  any  thing  except  the  merest  drudgery. 
Hence  in  many  cases  they  seem  to  be  ashamed  of 
them.  No  man  in  India  would,  on  any  account,  men- 
tion the  name  of  his  wife.  This  would  be  highly  dis- 
graceful, and  repugnant  to  the  feelings  he  has  imbibed 
and  cultivated !  When  he  has  occasion  to  refer  to  her 
in  conversation,  (a  thing,  however,  which  he  will  always 
avoid,)  he  calls  her  the  daughter  of  such  a  person,  or 
the  mother  of  such  a  child !  Her  business  is  to  pre- 
pare his  food,  to  wait  upon  him  at  meals,  to  eat  after 
him,  to  walk  at  a  respectful  distance  behind  him,  and 
in  every  possible  way  to  minister  to  his  wants.  Intel- 
lectual culture  they  do  not,  and  cannot  possess,  and 
therefore  the  pleasure  and  improvement  arising  from 
rational  conversation  in  society,  they  do  not  enjoy. 
Now  it  will  be  perceived  at  once  that  society,  con- 
structed on  such  principles,  contains  within  itself  the 
most  powerful  obstacles  to  its  own  improvement.  Every 
one  knows  the  incalculable  influence  for  good  or  for  ill 
which  the  female  mind  exerts  over  every  successive 

ll 


122  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


generation  as  it  rises  into  manhood,  and  until  all  the 
principles  of  action,  and  all  the  controlling  habits  of 
life  are  formed.  What  then  must  this  influence  he  in 
India,  when  it  originates  in  minds  as  dark  as  midnight, 
and  flows  from  hearts  so  carnal  and  depraved  ?  It  is 
to  counteract  and  remove  this  influence,  or  rather  to 
turn  it  to  some  good  account,  that  we  are  at  a  loss  to 
know  the  remedy  or  the  way  of  applying  it  to  the 
best  advantage.  Whatever  way  the  subject  may  be 
viewed,  we  consider  female  ignorance  in  India  to  be  an 
evil  of  the  most  enormous  magnitude,  an  evil  which  is 
the  source  of  many  others ;  and  until  it  be  removed, 
we  must  anticipate  serious  and  almost  insurmountable 
difficulties  to  lie  in  the  way  of  India's  improvement 
and  evangelization.  But,  at  present,  the  laws  of  so- 
ciety are  such,  that  however  anxious  we  may  be  to 
educate  the  female  sex,  and  thus  purify  the  streams  of 
society  at  the  very  fountain  head,  we  are  unable  to 
accomplish  our  object,  except  to  a  very  limited  extent. 
Hence  this  large  class,  almost  the  half  of  the  popula- 
tion, are,  in  a  great  measure,  entirely  removed  beyond 
the  sphere  of  missionary  influence.  They  cannot  read 
our  books,  and  they  are  not  permitted  to  hear  us  preach, 
and  doubtless  the  second-hand  information  they  obtain 
respecting  us  and  our  message,  is  most  unfavourable. 
Poor,  ignorant,  and  degraded  immortals !  We  pity 
them  exceedingly ;  we  sigh  over  the  forlorn  hopes  that 
are  at  present  entertained  in  their  behalf;  and  we  pray 
that  in  some  way,  we  scarcely  know  how,  they  may  be 
released  from  their  mental  disabilities  and  bondage, 
and  be  permitted  to  come  to  the  light  of  the  gospel, 
or  its  light  be  permitted  to  reach  them,  so  that  they 


FEMALE    EDUCATION.  123 


may  at  last  occupy  the  place  which  Providence  has  as- 
signed them.  Surely  those  who  exclude  them  from 
the  dearest  privileges  of  immortal  beings  on  earth, 
and  -which  so  peculiarly  belong  to  their  sex,  have  the 
greater  sin.  The  only  door  of  hope  that  we  can  dis- 
cover for  the  education  and  mental  elevation  of  the 
Hindu  females,  is  to  endeavour  to  change  public  opinion 
in  their  behalf,  to  educate  the  males,  and  by  creating 
in  them  a  sense  of  the  pleasures  and  advantages  of 
true  knowledge,  to  excite  in  them  at  the  same  time  a 
desire  to  cultivate  the  minds  of  the  other  sex.  This 
effect,  we  are  happy  to  say,  has  been  produced  to  some 
extent  in  the  educated  circles  in  Calcutta  and  other 
places,  where  the  benefits  of  sound  knowledge  are  be- 
ginning to  be  appreciated.  Female  education  is  also 
on  the  increase  at  all  the  mission  stations,  and  the  plan 
now  so  generally  adopted  of  giving  girls  a  pretty  li- 
beral education  in  boarding  schools,  where  they  are 
brought  under  the  entire  control  and  influence  of  Chris- 
tianity,  seems  much  more  likely  to  produce  good  to 
them  personally  and  to  qualify  them  to  become  instruc- 
tors to  others,  than  the  common  bazaar,  or  day-school 
system  which  was  formerly  pursued  by  the  friends  of 
female  education.  Many  of  those  who  are  now  being 
educated  in  our  female  orphan  boarding-schools,  will 
soon  be  prepared  to  aid  in  the  instruction  of  their  own 
sex,  and  thus  gradually  the  work  of  female  education, 
and  consequently  their  elevation  from  ignorance  and 
degradation  to  the  rank  which  they  were  designed  to 
occupy  in  society,  will  be  effected.  But  it  will  be  a 
work  of  time,  and  much  patience  and  perseverance 
will  be  necessary  in  its  accomplishment. 


124  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


4.  The  entire  absence  of  all  correct  principles  among 
the  Hindu  people,  and  their  azvful  moral  degradation, 
constitute  immense  difficulties  in  the  wag  of  a  pure 
gospel  A  very  brief  account  of  the  principles  taught 
in  the  Shasters,  and  firmly  maintained  by  the  people, 
as  also  of  some  of  their  idolatrous  rites  and  observances, 
has  already  been  given ;  and  we  presume  that  nothing 
more  is  necessary  to  show  the  nature  and  tendency  of 
such  principles  and  practices.  Some,  however,  may 
be  desirous  to  know  what  effect  is  produced  on  the 
moral  character  of  those  who  believe  in  such  principles. 
On  this  point  also  some  remarks  have  been  made  when 
describing  the  Hindus  as  a  people,  but  yet  the  half  has 
not  been  told,  nor  would  it  be  possible  fully  to  lay 
open  the  secrets  of  Hindu  iniquity  in  these  brief 
notices.  Even  were  it  possible,  it  would  not  be  pro- 
per to  describe  scenes  that  take  place,  in  the  very  wor- 
ship of  their  gods,  where  gross  impurity  and  licentious- 
ness throw  off  the  mask,  and  revel  in  all  kinds  of 
abominations.  We  have  no  hesitation  in  saying  that 
the  more  intimately  any  one  becomes  acquainted  with 
the  heathen  in  India, — and  the  Mohammedans  may  be 
included  also  in  this  description, — the  more  he  will 
discover  of  the  depths  of  their  depravity,  and  the  more 
closely  will  they  seem  to  resemble  the  picture  drawn 
by  the  pen  of  inspiration  in  Romans  i.  19-32,  and  iii. 
11-18.  During  the  eleven  years  we  resided  in  India, 
a  man  was  never  found  on  whom  we  could  depend  that 
he  would  speak  the  truth  when  falsehood  was  more  to 
his  advantage.  Native  Christians  are  not  of  course 
included  in  this  general  declaration.  In  their  case  we 
trust  that  grace  has  purified  their  hearts  through  the 


MORAL    DEGRADATION.  125 


truth,  and  given  them  to  see  the  sin  of  falsehood,  and 
that  "  all  liars  shall  have  their  part  in  the  lake  which 
burnetii  with  fire  and  brimstone;"  yet  even  some  of 
them,  under  strong  temptation,  and  from  the  power 
of  habits  acquired  in  youth,  have  been  known  to 
swerve  from  the  truth.  Lying,  prevarication,  dupli- 
city, deception,  servility,  avarice,  false-swearing,  and 
iniquity  in  all  its  varied  forms,  are  set  before  the  peo- 
ple in  the  practices  of  their  gods,  and  being  formed 
into  habits  from  childhood,  they  become  natural,  and 
seem  scarcely  at  all  to  affect  their  consciences.  As 
these  crimes  are  universal  in  society,  no  man  appears 
to  be  the  least  ashamed  of  being  detected  in  any  false 
scheme ;  nor  does  the  fact  lessen  any  man  in  the  esti- 
mation of  the  public;  but,  on  the  contrary,  whoever 
can  carry  through  such  a  scheme,  with  the  most  plausi- 
ble manner,  so  as  to  avoid  detection,  is  considered  to  be 
the  most  able,  if  not  the  most  honourable  of  his  fel- 
lows !  In  the  same  way,  the  impurity  of  their  conver- 
sation and  conduct  may  be  traced  up  to  the  examples 
set  them  by  their  divinities ;  or,  to  state  the  case  more 
accurately,  the  crimes  said  to  have  been  committed  by 
their  deities  are  only  a  counterpart  of  what  existed  in 
the  corrupt  minds  of  the  people.  Some  of  the  Hindu 
objects  of  worship  are  the  personifications  of  sin  in  its 
vilest  forms,  and  cannot  possibly  be  named.  The 
Shasters  themselves  are  full  of  obscene  allusions  and 
descriptions.  The  Hindu  temples  are  generally  com- 
mon brothels,  where  a  number  of  prostitutes  are  kept 
under  the  title  of  "  handmaidens  to  the  gods."  These 
are  the  "dancing  girls  of  India,"  who  sing  obscene 
songs,  and  by  their  blandishments  endeavour  to  give 


11* 


126  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


e*clat  to  idolatry  and  sensuality,  and  to  draw  more  vo- 
taries to  the  shrines.  Thus  gross  and  shameless  impu- 
rity is  mixed  up  with  religion  in  every  form,  and 
sanctioned  by  the  highest  authority.  The  same  vices 
prevail  throughout  the  entire  community,  so  that,  like 
the  cities  of  the  plain,  the  land  groans  under  the  weight 
of  iniquity  that  rests  upon  it,  and  calls  for  the  judg- 
ments of  heaven  to  wash  out  the  stains  by  which  it  is 
polluted. 

As  might  be  expected,  the  common  conversation  of 
the  people  is  impure  as  well  as  their  actions.  The 
most  vile  and  obscene  language,  in  the  form  of  abuse, 
which  they  call  gdll,  as  well  as  at  other  times  in  jest, 
is  almost  as  frequently  in  the  mouths  of  both  sexes,  as 
the  air  they  breathe.  This  pestilential  effusion  is  pro- 
fusely lavished  also  on  animals  as  well  as  human  be- 
ings, and  often,  doubtless,  without  knowing  what  has 
been  uttered.  This  filthy  habit,  of  course,  defiles  and 
blunts  the  moral  sense  of  the  people,  and  excites  to  all 
kinds  of  lasciviousness  in  conduct.  It  is  on  this  ac- 
count, as  well  as  others  that  might  be  named,  that  mis- 
sionaries and  English  residents  in  India  are  compelled, 
at  such  a  sacrifice  of  parental  feeling,  to  send  their 
children  out  of  the  country  at  an  early  age,  with  but 
little  hope  of  ever  seeing  them  again  in  this  world. 
Missionaries  themselves,  from  love  to  Christ  and  the 
souls  of  men,  can  cheerfully  leave  all  the  endear- 
ments of  a  Christian  land,  and  go  to  reside  in  an  insa- 
lubrious clime,  and  among  corrupt  and  abominable 
idolators,  but  they  cannot  consent  that  their  children 
should  be  exposed  to  such  a  polluted  atmosphere,  and 
acquire  the  habits  of  the  heathen.     They  would  rather 


VICES    OF   THE    HINDUS.  127 


submit  to  the  trial,  great  as  it  is,  of  parting  with  them 
at  an  interesting  period  of  life,  and  committing  them 
to  the  care  of  Christian  friends.  It  is  to  be  hoped 
that  those  whose  lot  it  is  to  be  thus  cast  upon  tho  un- 
friendly world,  and  to  be  made  virtually  orphans  for 
the  kingdom  of  heaven's  sake,  will  not  be  overlooked 
by  the  friends  of  the  missionary  cause.  Indeed,  we 
think  that  the  time  has  fully  come  when  the  church 
should  make  permanent  provision  for  the  children  of 
missionaries,  by  the  endowment  of  an  institution  where 
they  "would  receive  education,  and  that  assiduous  pa- 
rental care  which  they  require.  This  would  be  a  great 
relief  to  the  minds  of  their  parents,  and  enable  them 
to  endure  their  trials  abroad  with  greater  cheerfulness 
and  composure.  We  fondly  hope  that  benevolent 
Christians  at  home  will  soon  turn  their  attention  to 
this  subject. 

But  in  addition  to  falsehood  and  obscenity  both  in 
language  and  in  action,  there  are  many  other  gross 
vices  practised  by  the  heathen  in  Hindustan,  which  go 
to  deepen  the  shade  of  their  moral  character,  and  to 
retard  the  spread  of  the  gospel.  A  few  of  these  we 
may  name,  but  cannot  stay  to  illustrate  them.  As  a 
people  they  are  proverbial  for  dishonesty,  and  that 
they  may  succeed  in  their  low  schemes  of  avarice,  a 
thousand  lies  will  be  uttered,  and  all  kinds  of  deception 
practised,  without  almost  the  slightest  sense  of  sin  or 
^1  Dime.  Should  they  be  detected,  the  reply  is,  either 
tli.it  it  is  the  custom  of  the  country  to  do  so,  or  that 
the  action  is  only  the  result  of  what  the  Creator  him- 
self had  written  in  their  forehead,  and  therefore  it  is 
their  fate  and  misfortune  to  commit  it !     They  are  self- 


128  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


isli  in  their  plans  and  objects.  A  disinterested  motive 
never  actuates  them  to  perform  deeds  of  benevolence. 
Should  their  conduct  at  any  time  seem  disinterested, 
time  and  observation  will  show  that  it  was  only  pre- 
tence, and  done  with  the  sole  design  of  personal  gain 
or  promotion.  What  on  the  surface  of  Hindu  society 
may  seem  to  be  virtue,  will  be  found,  at  the  bottom,  to 
be  nothing  less  than  the  low  vice  of  selfishness.  When 
an  act  of  kindness  is  done  by  them  to  a  foreigner,  it  is 
with  the  design  of  making  gain  of  him ;  and  if,  on  the 
other  hand,  a  disinterested  act  of  kindness  be  done  to 
them,  instead  of  exciting  gratitude  in  their  hearts  for 
the  favour  received,  it  only  increases  their  desires  and 
expectations  of  obtaining  further  favours,  and  prompts 
them  to  take  advantage  of  your  good  disposition,  the 
more  effectually  to  impose  upon  you  or  to  rob  you. 
The  blackest  ingratitude  is  to  be  found  among  these 
people.  We  have  nursed  a  servant  during  a  long  pe- 
riod of  sickness  as  if  he  were  a  child,  administered 
the  medicine  with  our  own  hands,  and  done  every  thing 
in  our  power  to  alleviate  his  pain,  and  also  paid  him 
the  usual  wages  during  his  illness  and  until  he  was 
strong  enough  to  resume  his  business ;  but,  instead  of 
manifesting  a  sense  of  gratitude  for  all  this,  he  became 
so  disobedient,  impertinent,  and  careless  in  the  per- 
formance of  his  duties,  that  in  less  than  a  month  after- 
ward it  was  necessary  to  dismiss  him.  Such  a  case 
as  this  is  not  an  exception,  but  an  illustration  of  the 
general  disposition  of  the  people.  It  is  possible  that 
some  may  have  found  a  happy  exception  to  the  general 
principle,  but  it  is  certain  that  such  exceptions  are  ex- 
ceedingly rare.     Theorists  and  men  who  bear  the  name 


MORAL    DEGRADATION. 


129 


of  Christians,  but  know  nothing  of  true  religion  in 
their  own  experience,  may  talk  of  the  virtues  of  the 
heathen,  and  tell  us  that  they  need  but  very  little  re- 
form to  make  them  excellent  men,  and  far  better  than 
most  professors  of  Christianity ;  but  such  persons  are 
not  proper  judges  in  this  case.  Their  standard  of 
virtue  is  generally  too  low,  and  they  have  had  but  little 
acquaintance  with  the  practical  workings  of  heathen 
morality.  The  cringing  and  crawling,  the  fawning 
and  flattery,  the  politeness  and  the  polish,  and  the 
seeming  timidity  and  humility  of  the  Hindus,  together 
with  their  apparent  religious  devotion,  are  all  looked 
upon,  by  such  men,  as  excellent  and  praiseworthy  traits 
of  character.  A  little  more  experience  would  show 
that  all  these  are  but  the  mask,  well  worn  to  be  sure, 
but  only  the  mask,  beneath  which  exist  meanness, 
hypocrisy,  and  selfishness,  and  even  pride  itself  in  no 
ordinary  degree,  all  working  together  for  the  attain- 
ment of  but  one  end,  and  that  is,  their  own  worldly 
interests.  Whatever  men  may  say,  experience  of  the 
moral  character  of  the  heathen  goes  fully  to  corrobo- 
rate the  express  statements  of  the  word  of  God  respect- 
ing them.  They  are  "filled  with  all  unrighteousness, 
fornication,  wickedness,  covetousness,  maliciousness, 
full  of  envy,  murder,  debate,  deceit,  malignity,  whis- 
perers, backbiters,  haters  of  God,  despiteful,  proud, 
boasters,  inventors  of  evil  things,  disobedient  to  parents, 
without  understanding,  covenant  breakers,  without  na- 
tural affection,  implacable,  unmerciful:  who  knowing 
the  judgment  of  God,  that  they  which  commit  such 
things  are  worthy  of  death,  not  only  do  the  same,  but 
have  pleasure  in  them  that  do  them."     This  is  no  ca- 


rz 

i 


130  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


ricature,  but  a  faithful  drawing  of  Hinduism.  It  is 
not  a  likeness  of  a  few  of  the  Hindus,  but  of  the  whole 
people.  For  it  may  be  said  with  truth,  that  "they 
are  all  gone  out  of  the  way,  they  are  together  become 
unprofitable,  there  is  none  that  doeth  good,  no  not  one." 
Surely  those  who  believe  also  what  the  Bible  says,  re- 
garding the  eternal  destinies  of  the  heathen,  who  die 
in  this  condition,  must  believe  also  that  it  is  the  impe- 
rative duty  of  Christians  to  send  them  the  gospel  of 
Christ,  as  the  only  means  of  salvation,  however  diffi- 
cult it  may  be  to  put  them  in  possession  of  it. 

5.    The  stupendous  system  of  idolatry,  with  all  its 
carnal  and  imposing  rites,  which  the  grand  adversary 
of  the  human  family  has  established  among  the  Hindis, 
is  a  most  fearful  obstacle  to  the  introduction  of  Christ's 
spiritual  kingdom  in  the  midst  of  them.     The  whole 
history  of  the  Jewish  people,  and  their  repeated  re- 
lapses into  idolatry,  show  very  clearly  that  there  is 
something  in  idolatry  which  exerts  a  fascinating  influ- 
ence over  the  carnal  heart.     A  spiritual   religion  is 
repugnant  to  men  in  a  natural  state.     They  prefer  the 
worship  of  the  creatures  their  own  hands  have  formed, 
of  deities  "altogether  like  unto  themselves,"  to  the 
worship  of  the  unseen  God.     "  The  natural  man  re- 
ceiveth  not  the  things  of  the  spirit  of  God ;  they  are 
foolishness  to  him,  neither  can  he  know  them,  because 
they  are  spiritually  discerned."     The  simplicity  also 
of  the  worship  of  the  true  God,  who  is  "to  be  wor- 
shipped in  spirit  and  in  truth,"  is  not  agreeable  to  men 
of  corrupt  minds.     It  does  not  gratify  their  love  of 
vanity  and  extravagance,  nor  give  room  for  that  "  bodily 
exercise,"  which  profiteth  little.     Satan  having  much 


SYSTEM   OF   IDOLATRY.  131 


acquaintance  with  the  desires  of  men  in  a  state  of 
enmity  and  rebellion  against  God,  has  always  intro- 
duced among  a  people  that  kind  of  false  religion  which 
is  most  suitable  to  their  habits  and  temperament,  and 
most  likely  to  obtain  a  permanent  seat  in  their  affec- 
tions.    Accordingly  we  find  that  the  cunning  of  the 
serpent  is  admirably  displayed  in  the  whole  construction 
and  establishment  of  the  Hindu  religion.     It  is   de- 
signed to  captivate  minds  fond  of  the  marvellous  and 
of  all  kinds  of  extravagance,  and   to   gratify  tastes 
which  relish  most  of  all  the  glitter  and  pageantry  of 
external  forms,  and  the  minutiae  of  trifling  and  puerile 
rites.     It  makes  high  pretensions  to   antiquity,  and 
doubtless  its  origin  may  be  traced  far  back  in  the  an- 
nals of  the  world. "    It  claims  to  be  supernatural,  and 
attempts  to  support  these  claims,  by  a  species  of  me- 
taphysical arguments  which   could  appear  conclusive 
only  to  Hindu  minds,  and  by  a  record  of  the  most 
stupendous    miracles    wrought   for   its    confirmation; 
miracles,  which  by  their  splendour,  throw  far  back  in 
the  shade  those  that  are  mentioned  in  the  Christian 
Scriptures,  but  for  the  existence  of  which  there  is  not 
the  shadow  of  proof.     Its   ceremonies   and  worship, 
consisting  of  bathing,  painting  the  body,  offering  water, 
and  flowers  and  fruit,  and  animals  to  senseless  and 
disgusting  idols,  and  going  through  almost  an  infinity 
of  the  most  trifling  and  superstitious  performances,  are 
all  adapted  exactly  to  that  people,  and  to  the  climate 
in  which  they  dwell,  but  could  never  obtain  in  a  north- 
ern climate  or  among  its  more  vigorous  inhabitants. 
The  Hindus  are  an  imaginative  people,  and  to  gratify 
their  vain  imaginations,  stories  of  the  most  romantic 


132  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


character,  and  scenes  of  the  most  gorgeous  and  fasci- 
nating description,  having  all  the  bewitching  charms 
of  a  novel  or  a  romance,  are  to  be  found  in  their  sacred 
books.  Nor  does  Hinduism  confine  its  adherents  to 
one  kind  of  belief,  or  to  any  particular  form  of  observ- 
ances. As  there  are  lords  many,  and  gods  many, 
and  female  divinities  in  abundance,  every  man  is  at 
liberty  to  choose  the  object  of  worship  most  agreeable 
to  his  taste,  and  the  form  of  worship  most  suitable  to 
his  convenience.  There  is  the  utmost  latitude  allowed 
in  all  these  respects,  if  care  is  taken  to  keep  within 
the  wide  range  provided  in  the  Shasters,  and  to  pre- 
serve the  distinction  of  caste.  They  sometimes  tell 
us,  that  as  Brahma  has  many  faces,  and  their  temples 
many  doors,  so  there  are  many  ways  by  which  the  Su- 
preme may  be  worshipped,  and  many  doors  by  which 
they  may  enter  heaven,  and  attain  to  a  rank  with  the 
gods !  There  are  also  various  degrees  of  rewards  and 
punishments  held  forth,  and  men  may  decide  what 
point  in  the  scale  they  would  wish  to  reach,  and  then 
live  accordingly.  There  are  gods  also  to  patronize  all 
kinds  of  worshippers.  When  the  Hindu  seeks  wealth, 
and  wisdom  to  obtain  it,  he  becomes  a  devoted  wor- 
shipper of  Gfaneshj  an  idol  with  an  elephant's  head 
placed  upon  a  corpulent  body.  Those  who  cultivate 
the  soil,  and  those  who  desire  an  enlargement  in  their 
families,  take  the  goddess  of  fertility  as  their  guardian 
deity.  Those  who  are  the  admirers  of  beauty,  of  fun 
and  frolic,  or  whose  propensity  runs  in  the  way  of  theft 
or  deceit,  become  the  sincere  followers  of  Krishna  and 
his  mistress.  Thus,  in  almost  endless  varieties,  there 
are  objects  and  modes  of  worship  to  suit  men's  tastes 


DIFFICULTIES   IN   THE   WAY.  133 


and  temperaments.  Some  of  the  deities  require  bloody 
sacrifices,  and  the  performance  of  the  most  horrible 
austerities  in  their  worshippers ;  others  can  be  put  off 
with  a  few  grains  of  rice,  and  a  salam,  as  it  may  suit 
the  convenience  of  their  poor  adherents.  Thus  it  is 
that  Satan  has  been  enthroned  in  the  hearts  of  his  sub- 
jects in  India;  and,  like  the  strong  man  armed,  has 
kept  his  house  in  peace  from  generation  to  generation. 
"We  trust  the  time  is  near,  when  the  gospel  will  under- 
mine and  demolish  these  mighty  barriers,  and  bring 
the  blind  idolaters  of  Hindustan  to  a  knowledge  and 
love  of  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus.  In  accomplishing 
this,  it  is  evident  that  great  and  powerful  difficulties 
must  be  encountered,  and  an  immense  amount  of  rub- 
bish removed.  Indeed,  when  we  consider  the  adapta- 
tion of  the  Hindu  religion  to  the  people  for  whom  it 
was  designed ;  its  great  antiquity ;  the  numerous  and 
imposing  miracles  by  which,  in  their  estimation,  it  is 
supported ;  its  imposing  rounds  of  ceremonies ;  the  easy 
terms  on  which  it  offers  salvation ;  the  chains  of  caste 
by  which  it  is  bound  together ;  the  absurd  customs  that 
prevail  in  society,  and  to  which  all  are  slaves ;  the  ig- 
norance of  the  people ;  the  variety  of  languages  spoken ; 
the  want  of  terms  by  which  to  impart  accurate  ideas 
in  religion;  the  superstition  and  prejudices  of  the  com- 
munity ;  the  moral  and  intellectual  degradation  of  the 
female  sex;  and  the  entire  want  of  correct  principles 
in  society  at  large:  then  the  conclusion  is  plain  and 
irresistible,  that  Christianity  must  work  its  way  in  Hin- 
dustan, against  obstacles  which  nothing  but  Almighty 
power  and  grace  can  possibly  resist  and  overcome. 
How  important  then,  that  the  church  should  arise  in 

12 


134  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


her  might,  and  in  dependence  on  an  omnipotent  arm, 
go  up  at  once  to  the  help  of  the  Lord  against  the 
mighty.  The  undertaking,  though  one  of  immense 
magnitude,  is  not  hopeless.  Though  missionaries  in 
that  land  of  thick  darkness,  have  been  heretofore  but 
few  in  number,  their  labours  have  not  been  in  vain. 
And  when  all  these  difficulties  are  kept  in  view,  and 
many  more  that  might  have  been  mentioned,  it  will  be 
seen,  when  we  proceed  to  record  the  actual  condition 
of  mission  stations,  as  they  have  come  under  our  ob- 
servation, that  the  Lord  has  blessed  the  labours  of  his 
servants  with  a  success  equal  to  their  expectations, 
and  given  the  Church  ground  to  hope,  that  by  a  faith- 
ful application  of  the  means  within  her  power,  she  may 
anticipate  the  most  signal  victory. 

As  a  kind  of  contrast  to  the  discouragements  which 
meet  us  in  missionary  labours  among  the  heathen,  and 
which  ought  to  be  known  by  the  friends  of  missions, 
we  now  mention  a  few  grounds  of  encouragement,  cal- 
culated to  cheer  them  forward  in  the  great  and  glo- 
rious cause  of  the  world's  emancipation. 

1.  The  command  of  Gfod  our  Saviour  to  evangelize 
all  nations,  is  ample  encouragement  to  attempt  the 
work,  however  difficult  it  mag  be,  and  however  foolish 
it  mag  seem  in  the  eges  of  the  world.  The  walls  of 
Jericho  doubtless  seemed  impregnable,  and  the  blow- 
ing of  ram's  horns  a  poor  expedient  for  levelling  them 
to  the  ground.  But  as  this  simple  means  was  the  ar- 
rangement of  God,  who  would  thus  magnify  his  own 
great  name  in  the  sight  of  the  heathen,  and  set  at 
naught  the  wisdom  of  the  world,  so  that  no  flesh  should 
glory  in  his  presence ;  and  as  the  thing  was  performed 


ENCOURAGEMENTS   TO    LABOUR.  135 


in  accordance  with  his  command,  it  was  perfectly  suc- 
cessful. In  the  same  way  we  look  upon  the  Hindu 
system  of  idolatry  as  being  perfectly  impregnable,  as 
far  as  human  power  is  concerned;  but  then  we  act 
under  the  express  command  of  Him  who  has  all  power 
over  mind  and  matter  in  his  own  hand ;  and  we  wield 
weapons  which,  though  foolishness  in  the  sight  of  men, 
are  omnipotent  and  divine,  and  "mighty  through  God 
to  the  pulling  down  of  strongholds."  Under  the  ban- 
ner of  the  King  of  Zion — which  is  destined  to  wave 
victorious  over  every  land,  and  to  grace  the  ranks  of  a 
willing  people  out  of  every  nation  under  heaven — we 
fight  and  labour ;  and  although  the  struggles  with  the 
powers  of  darkness  may  be  long  and  difficult,  in  order 
to  prove  our  faith  and  patience,  the  victory  is  perfectly 
sure. 

2.  The  Providence  of  God,  in  so  widely  opening 
the  door  for  missionaries  in  India,  gives  encourage- 
ment to  believe  that  the  set  time  for  ■  evangelizing  the 
Hindus  has  fully  come.  It  was  indeed  a  strange  con- 
catenation of  events  that  placed  the  immense  empire 
of  Hindustan  under  the  rule  of  Britain.  Though  from 
the  first  in  a  great  measure  opposed  to  her  own  wishes, 
one  circumstance  after  another  led  her  on  by  a  kind 
of  involuntary  impulse,  to  add  conquest  to  conquest, 
until  now  it  may  be  said  the  whole  land  has  either 
fallen  into  her  hands,  or  has  been  brought  under  the 
wings  of  her  protection  !  The  policy  of  the  English 
rulers  at  first, — a  great  many  of  whom  it  is  to  be 
feared  'were  men  of  infidel  principles, — was  not  to  ad- 
mit missionaries  into  the  country,  lest  that  blessed 
religion,  to  which  they  owed  so  much,  should  find  a 


Tl 


136  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


footing  among  their  idolatrous  subjects,  and  become 
the  cause  of  insubordination!  The  policy  pursued, 
however,  by  their  successors,  we  are  happy  to  say,  has 
been  much  more  liberal  and  enlightened,  giving  protec- 
tion and  countenance  to  the  Christian  missionary  from 
any  part  of  the  world,  to  labour  in  any  part  of  their 
dominions.  Surely  the  Church  of  God  cannot  look 
upon  all  these  movements  of  Providence  with  indiffe- 
rence, but  must  conclude  that  she  has  an  important 
duty  to  perform,  where  the  field  is  so  inviting  and  so 
widely  opened  before  her.  When  the  call  is  so  loud 
and  so  plain  and  pressing,  she  cannot  stand  back  and 
be  guiltless.  Indeed,  the  very  fact  that  she  has  been, 
in  some  measure,  aroused  to  her  duty,  is  an  additional 
ground  of  hope  on  this  subject. 

3.  And  lastly :  The  promises  of  Gfod  furnish  an 
abundant  guaranty,  that  the  gospel  in  its  progress 
through  the  nations,  shall  surmount  every  obstacle,  and 
that  the  faithful  and  persevering  exertions  of  the 
Church  of  Christ  shall  be  crowned  with  complete  and 
triumphant  success.  As  every  Christian,  who  reads 
his  Bible,  must  be  acquainted  with  the  promises  that 
refer  to  the  universal  spread  of  the  gospel,  it  is  unne- 
cessary to  refer  to  them  here.  They  furnish  the  most 
ample  and  explicit  ground  to  believe  that  Satan's  king- 
dom shall  be  destroyed,  that  all  his  immense  establish- 
ments against  the  progress  of  the  gospel  in  all  lands 
must  give  way  before  the  increasing  power  and  univer- 
sal sway  of  "Messiah  the  Prince ;"  and  that  all  nations 
shall  hear  and  fear  and  turn  to  the  Lord,  and  cast 
away  their  idols  to  the  moles  and  the  bats  as  lying 
vanities.     Oh,  how  precious  and  animating  are  these 


ENCOURAGEMENTS   TO   LABOUR.  137 


promises  to  missionaries  among  the  heathen  in  times 
of  trial  and  discouragement  ?  They  are  the  source  of 
their  consolation,  and  they  inspire  them  with  fresh 
courage.  Trusting  in  these  promises,  though  weak  in 
themselves,  they  feel  strong  in  the  Lord,  and  in  the 
power  of  his  might.  They  know  that  he  is  faithful 
who  hath  promised — that  none  of  his  promises  can  fail, 
and  that  none  of  his  purposes  of  grace  can  remain  un- 
fulfilled. Let  the  people  of  God  at  home  plead  these 
promises  continually,  and  do  all  in  their  power  to  en- 
lighten benighted  India,  and  then  see  if  the  Lord  will 
not  open  the  windows  of  heaven  and  pour  out  a  bless- 
ing as  large  as  their  wishes,  even  until  there  shall  not 
be  room  to  receive  it. 


12* 


138  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Organization  and  efforts  of  the  first  mission  to  the  heathen — Travels 
of  Paul  and  Barnabas,  and  their  success — Report  made  to  the 
church  at  Antioch — Inferences  from  this  Scriptural  example — 
Progress  and  prospects  of  the  gospel  in  North  India — Particular 
account  of  missionary  operations  at  Fathagarh — Farruckabad — 
Kanpur — Allahabad — Mirzapur — Chunar — Banaras — Ghazepur 
— Patna — Monghyr  —  Berhampur — Culna — Chinsurah — Seram- 
pur — Calcutta — London  mission  schools — Schools  of  the  Free 
Church  of  Scotland — Education  in  the  metropolis — Past  success 
— Cheering  prospects — Character  of  the  missionaries — Results 
of  their  labours. 

In  the  thirteenth  and  fourteenth  chapters  of  the 
Acts  of  the  Apostles,  we  have  a  particular  account  of 
the  organization  and  efforts  of  the  first  mission  for  the 
spread  of  the  gospel  among  the  heathen.  While  some 
eminent  and  leading  Christians  at  Antioch  were  en- 
gaged in  fasting,  and  in  prayer  to  God  for  wisdom  and 
direction  in  the  new  and  peculiar  circumstances  in 
which  Providence  had  placed  them;  and  anxious  "to 
know  what  Israel  ought  to  do"  in  regard  to  the  exten- 
sion of  the  church,  and  in  fulfilment  of  the  last  com- 
mand of  the  Saviour,  to  go  into  all  the  ivorld,  and 
preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature,  we  are  informed 
that  "the  Holy  Ghost  said  to  them," — whether  hy 
means  of  certain  prophets  that  were  among  them,  or 
by  the  language  of  his  Providence,  we  are  not  in- 
formed, but  doubtless  in  some  way  the  revelation  was 
sufficiently  plain, — "  Separate  me  Barnabas  and  Saul 


FIRST    MISSIONS   TO   THE    HEATHEN.  139 


for  the  work  whereunto  I  have  called  them."  The 
church,  in  obedience  to  the  heavenly  vision,  proceeded 
■without  delay,  by  prayer  and  solemn  appointment, 
with  fasting,  to  send  to  the  gentiles  these  men,  whose 
hearts  burned  with  ardour  to  be  engaged  in  the  glo- 
rious service ;  and  they,  we  are  informed,  being  sent 
forth  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  departed  at  once  to  convey 
the  messages  of  the  gospel  to  the  perishing  nations. 

Arriving  at  Seleucia  they  sailed  to  Cyprus,  and  then 
travelled  through  the  whole  of  the  Island  from  Salamis 
on  the  east  to  Paphos  on  the  west.  Taking  ship  again, 
and  loosing  from  Paphos,  they  sailed  to  Perga  in  Pam- 
phylia,  then  travelled  to  Antioch  in  Pisidia,  to  Iconium, 
to  Lystra,  and  to  Derbe.  In  all  these  places  their 
labours  were  abundant,  and  their  success  encouraging, 
though  their  trials  were  numerous,  and  the  opposition 
they  had  frequently  to  encounter  was  great  and  pow- 
erful. From  Derbe  they  return  the  same  way,  to 
Perga  in  Pamphylia,  ordaining  elders  in  the  churches 
they  had  gathered,  and  commending  the  young  dis- 
ciples to  the  Lord  on  whom  they  believed.  From 
Perga  they  go  down  to  Attalia,  and  from  thence  they 
sail  to  Antioch  in  Syria,  "  from  whence  they  had  been 
recommended  to  the  grace  of  God,  for  the  work  which 
they  fulfilled.  And  when  they  Avere  come,  and  had 
gathered  the  church  together,  they  rehearsed  all  that 
God  had  done  with  them,  and  how  he  had  opened  the 
door  of  faith  unto  the  gentiles." 

Now,  from  this  brief  narrative  of  the  first  foreign 
missionary  efforts  of  the  church  in  primitive  times,  we 
think  we  may  legitimately  draw  the  following  infe- 
rences:— 1.  That  in  attempting  to  comply  with  the 


140 


MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


command  of  Christ,  it  is  the  duty  of  the  church,  even 
in  troublous  times,  when  she  is  small  in  numbers  and 
■weak  in  her  resources,  to  send  men  to  evangelize  the 
heathen,  and  that  in  selecting  and  sending  forth  these 
men,  she  should  be  deeply  engaged  in  prayer  for  the 
direction  and  blessing  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  2.  That 
when  missionaries  are  sent  forth  by  the  church,  they 
should  be  "recommended  to  the  grace  of  God,"  that 
they  may  be  faithful  and  successful  in  the  work  to 
■which  they  have  been  called,  and  prayer  on  their  be- 
half should  be  incessant,  as  Avithout  the  grace  and 
blessing  of  God  their  labours  must  all  be  in  vain. 
3.  That  when  missionaries  have  been  sent  forth,  they 
should  be  willing  cheerfully  to  meet  every  difficulty,  and 
to  endure  every  trial,  and  to  be  most  diligent  and  labo- 
rious in  the  discharge  of  the  awfully  solemn  and  respon- 
sible work  which  they  have  undertaken.  4.  That  the 
same  Providence  which  leads  a  missionary  to  leave  his 
Christian  friends  and  go  far  hence  to  the  gentiles,  may 
make  it  to  be  his  duty  to  return  to  them  again  for  a 
time,  not  only  that  his  health  and  Christian  spirits  may 
be  refreshed  by  a  short  residence  among  those  who 
sent  him  forth,  but  more  especially  that  he  may  "  re- 
hearse what  God  has  done  with  him,"  and  how  his 
message  has  been  received  by  the  heathen.  5.  That 
when  a  missionary  returns  to  make  his  report  to  the 
churches,  the  people  should  not  only  delight  to  come 
together  to  hear,  but  rejoice  to  know  that  "  the  door 
of  faith  had  been  opened  to  the  gentiles,"  and  become 
more  willing  to  prosecute  with  vigour  the  important 
work  they  have  commenced.  6.  Missionaries  when 
they  make  their  report  should  be  careful  to  give  the 


PROGRESS   OP  THE   WORK.  141 


praise  of  any  good  that  has  been  effected  through  their 
instrumentality  entirely  to  the  efficacy  of  the  grace  of 
God.  Instead  of  vainglorious  boasting  of  what  they  had 
done  in  the  missionary  field,  Paul  and  Barnabas,. in  a 
delightful  spirit  of  humility,  "rehearsed  what  Grod  had 
done  with  them, ' '  and  by  them,  and  how  He,  not  they,  had 
opened  the  door  of  faith  unto  the  gentiles.  After  this 
example,  and  we  trust  in  the  same  spirit,  it  is  our  design 
now  to  give  such  information  as  we  possess  regarding, 
the  progress  and  prospects  of  missionary  labour  in  North 
India.  In  doing  so  we  shall  first  give  some  account 
of  the  labours  of  other  missionaries,  and  then  of  the  Lo- 
diana  mission  with  which  we  have  been  connected. 

During  a  long  journey  from  Saharanpur,  almost  on 
the  north-west  frontier  of  Hindustan,  to  Calcutta,  a 
distance  by  water  of  about  fourteen  hundred  miles,  we 
made  it  a  point  to  stop  a  day  or  more  at  all  the  mis- 
sion stations  on  the  way,  in  order  to  examine  particu- 
larly into  their  actual  condition,  the  plans  pursued  by 
the  missionaries,  and  the  progress  already  made  in  the 
great  work  to  which  their  labours  are  devoted.  The 
statements,  therefore,  that  shall  be  made,  are  the  result 
of  personal  observation,  as  they  will  have  reference  to 
those  places  only  which  it  was  our  privilege  to  visit. 
Before  entering  into  details,  however,  it  may  be  proper 
here  to  state  in  general,  that  from  all  that  has  been 
witnessed  we  have  been  fully  impressed,  that  in  propor- 
tion to  the  number  of  missionaries  employed,  and  the 
amount  of  resources  at  command,  a  deep  and  broad 
foundation  has  been  laid  in  the  mission  work,  and  a 
degree  of  success  obtained  which  could  hardly  have 
been  expected,  especially  when  the  obstacles  to  which 


142  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


we  have  already  referred  are  taken  into  the  account, 
and  that  there  is  every  reason  to  believe  that  if  the 
churches  at  home  he  faithful  to  the  trust  committed  to 
them  by  their  Divine  Head,  and  their  missionaries 
persevering,  the  benighted  heathen  of  Hindustan  will 
ere  long  be  enlightened,  and  brought  to  a  knowledge 
of  the  true  God.  To  effect  this,  however,  much  more 
must  be  done  by  professing  Christians  than  has  ever 
yet  been  attempted ;  and  it  may  be  well  also  to  repeat 
here  what  has  often  been  stated  in  letters  to  Christian 
friends,  that  ever  since  an  intimate  acquaintance  of  the 
real  state  of  things  amongst  the  Hindus  has  been  ob- 
tained, such  as  their  ignorance,  prejudices,  bigotry,  and 
superstitions,  we  have  been  entirely  convinced,  that  in 
order  to  remove  these  evils,  and  to  undermine  and 
overthrow  their  immense  and  long-established  system 
of  idolatry,  there  will  be  required  on  the  part  of  God, 
as  the  efficient  Agent,  the  exercise  of  Almighty  power 
and  grace,  and  on  the  part  of  man,  as  the  instrument, 
a  work  of  much  faith,  and  toil,  and  prayer,  and  pa- 
tience. Let  not  the  churches  at  home,  therefore,  be 
discouraged  by  the  apparent  small  success  which  has 
attended  the  labours  of  missionaries,  who  have  hereto- 
fore been  acting  the  part  of  pioneers,  and  the  results 
of  whose  efforts  in  sapping  and  mining  the  bulwarks 
of  heathenism,  and  in  preparing  arms  and  ammunition 
for  a  grand  attack  on  the  powers  of  darkness,  will  be 
seen  at  a  future,  and  we  trust  not  a  very  distant  day. 
After  a  severe  and  protracted  illness,  during  which 
Mrs.  Campbell's  life  was  frequently  despaired  of,  the 
urgent  advice  of  the  medical  attendants,  as  well  as  the 
unanimous  vote  of  all  the  brethren  in  the  mission,  ren- 


"-=  HCWL>-NL» 


PALANKEEN     TRAVELLING. 


Page  143. 


MISSION   AT   FATHAGARH.  143 


dered  it  necessary  to  return,  for  a  time,  to  the  United 
States.  With  much  regret  we  left  our  home  at  Sahd- 
ranpur,  and  proceeded  to  that  point  on  the  Ganges 
nearest  to  us  in  a  straight  direction.  This  journey, 
of  about  forty  miles  by  land,  was  performed  in  a  single 
night,  the  family  being  carried  in  doolies  or  litters. 
On  arriving  at  the  banks  of  that  celebrated  stream,  we 
found  a  native  boat  waiting  to  receive  us,  and  convey 
us  to  Calcutta,  a  distance  of  about  one  thousand  four 
hundred  miles  by  water.  It  was  an  open  boat  of  rude 
construction,  about  thirty  feet  in  length,  and  twelve 
feet  in  beam  at  the  centre.  In  order  to  render  it 
habitable  for  some  months,  a  deck  was  formed  by  bind- 
ing bambus  together  with  cords,  and  placing  them 
longitudinally  on  the  cross  beams,  over  which  coarse 
mats  were  thrown.  Then  over  three-fourths  of  the 
deck,  a  grass  house  was  erected,  the  top  of  which  was 
about  seven  feet  in  height,  and  sloping  down  from  the 
centre  to  the  sides,  about  a  yard  high,  and  formed  of 
mats.  The  whole  was  divided  into  two  small  apart- 
ments, lined  inside  with  a  coarse  kind  of  white  muslin,  to 
give  them  an  air  of  decency.  On  the  top  of  this  floating 
hay-stack,  as  it  seemed,  was  erected  a  staging  or  plat- 
form of  bambus,  where  accommodation  was  afforded  for 
the  boatmen  to  sleep  in  the  open  air  during  the  night. 
After  sailing  down  the  Ganges  more  than  two  hun- 
dred miles,  the  first  mission  station  to  which  we  came 
was  that  in  connection  with  the  Presbyterian  Board  at 
Fathagarh,  which  was  commenced  in  1838,  by  the  Rev. 
II.  R.  Wilson,  now  in  the  United  States.  At  that 
large  and  interesting  place,  there  were  formerly  four 
missionaries,  and  there  are  houses  to  accommodate  that 


144 


MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


number,  but  when  I  passed,  there  were  only  two  remain- 
ing, the  Rev.  J.  L.  Scott,  and  the  Rev.  W.  H.  McAuley, 
together  with  Gopi  Nath  Nundy,  an  ordained  native 
preacher,  and  two  catechists :  the  Rev.  Mr.  Rankin 
having  gone  some  time  before  to  join  the  Rev.  J.  Wilson 
in  forming  a  station  at  Agra,  and  the  Rev.  Mr.  Walsh 
also  having  gone  to  the  station  at  Mynpuri,  in  connec- 
tion with  this  mission,  to  supply  the  place  of  Mr.  Scott. 
The  hands  of  these  brethren,  however,  were  strength- 
ened shortly  after  by  the  arrival  of  two  other  mission- 
aries, the  Rev.  Messrs.  Seeley  and  Irving,  whom  we 
met  on  their  way  up.  In  the  ancient  and  very  popu- 
lous city  of  Furruckabad,  which  adjoins  Fathagarh, 
Mr.  McAuley  has  a  large  school,  with  about  one  hun- 
dred boys  in  attendance,  to  whom  the  native  and  Eng- 
lish languages  are  taught.  All  of  those  that  are  able 
to  read,  are  instructed  daily  in  the  Sacred  Scriptures, 
and  have  their  important  truths  explained  to  them  and 
pressed  upon  their  attention.  A  number  of  those  who 
are  most  advanced,  attend  preaching  in  Hindust&ni 
every  Sabbath.  Several  of  them,  whom  we  examined, 
appear  to  be  intellectually  convinced  not  only  of  the 
gross  errors  of  their  own  Shasters,  but  of  the  truth 
of  Christianity ;  but  from  fear  of  their  friends,  or  the 
scorn  and  reproach  of  others,  are  as  yet  unwilling  to 
join  themselves  to  their  teachers,  or  take  up  the  cross 
of  Christ  by  a  profession  of  the  gospel.  At  the  other 
end  of  the  station,  there  is  a  very  interesting  orphan 
establishment  under  the  care  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Scott.* 


*  Mrs.  Scott  has  since  died  at  sea,  on  her  way  to  the  United 
States,  her  health  having  failed.  She  was  an  active,  intelligent, 
and  useful  Christian  and  missionary. 


CHRISTIAN   VILLAGE   AT   FATIIAGAItH.  145 


It  contained,  when  I  was  there,  thirty-nine  boys  and 
forty-two  girls,  many  of  them  grown  up  to  age ;  and 
from  this  institution  a  Christian  village  had  sprung  up, 
containing  sixteen  families  and  twelve  children,  all  of 
whom  appeared  to  be  happy  and  doing  well.  This 
orphan  institution  is  now  making  every  effort  to  sup- 
port itself  by  manual  labour.  Factories  on  a  pretty 
extensive  scale  for  the  manufacture  of  carpets  and 
tents,  saltpetre,  fancy  needlework,  &c,  are  carried  on, 
in  which  the  pupils,  as  well  as  the  families  in  the  Chris- 
tian village,  find  employment,  while,  at  the  same  time, 
an  opportunity  is  still  afforded  to  acquire  more  reli- 
gious knowledge,  and  to  mature  the  character  of  those 
who  have  made  a  public  profession  of  the  gospel.  As 
members  of  the  institution  marry  they  are  settled  in  the 
Christian  village ; — a  community  with  tastes  and  habits 
like  themselves,  where  they  can  live  by  their  industry, 
and  are  freed  from  the  annoyances  and  contaminating 
influences  of  the  heathen  around  them. 

The  church  formed  by  the  missionaries  numbered 
twenty-five  native  members,  fifteen  of  whom  are  from 
the  orphan  school.  So  far  but  one  case  of  church  dis- 
cipline had  been  called  for,  and,  in  that  case,  admoni- 
tion before  the  session  was  deemed  sufficient.  The 
general  deportment  of  the  church  members  has  been 
good,  but  the  brethren  complain  that  they  do  not  see 
that  degree  of  vital  piety  and  religious  feeling  among 
them  that  would  be  desirable,  and  that  would  be  ex- 
pected of  young  converts  in  Christian  lands.  It  was 
my  privilege  when  there,  to  preach  on  the  Sabbath  in 
Hindustani,  to  about  a  hundred  and  twenty  native 
worshippers,  and  I  delight  to  say,  that  a  more  atten- 

13 


146  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


tive  audience  I  have  rarely  seen  any  where.  The  visit 
to  this  institution,  so  admirably  arranged  and  "well  con- 
ducted, and  with  prospects  so  encouraging,  afforded  us 
very  great  pleasure.  The  only  thing  that  caused  re- 
gret, was  the  great  want  of  missionary  help  to  carry 
on  the  work,  as  two  men,  with  all  the  native  assistance 
they  had,  seemed  quite  overwhelmed  with  the  important 
duties  of  the  station.* 

Leaving  Fathagarh,  about  one  hundred  and  twenty 
miles  brought  us  to  Kdnpur,  where  we  had  the  pleasure 
of  spending  the  day  with  the  Rev.  Mr.  Perkins  and 
Mr.  Schleicher,  missionaries  of  the  Propagation  So- 
ciety, and  of  examining  the  native  female  orphan 
asylum  under  their  care.  After  having  married  a  num- 
ber of  the  pupils  to  Christian  young  men,  the  institu- 
tion still  contained  about  fifty  girls,  whose  happy  faces, 
and  clean  and  modest  appearance,  spoke  most  favour- 
ably for  themselves,  and  the  manner  in  which  they  had 
been  educated  and  provided  for  by  Mrs.  Perkins.  How 
different  their  situation,  living  as  a  Christian  family, 
and  being  brought  up  in  the  fear  of  God,  and  in  habits 
of  industry,  to  what  it  would  have  been,  had  they  been 
left  in  a  state  of  ignorance  and  destitution,  to  become 
a  prey  to  the  destructive  influence  of  vice,  or  the 
slaves  of  selfish  and  corrupt  masters?  Specimens  of 
their  worsted  and  needlework  that  we  saw,  were  truly 
handsome;  and  by  this  kind  of  industry,  they  raise  a 
fund  annually  that  goes  far  toward  their  support.  A 
small  boys'  school  has  been  established  lately,  and  it 

*  Since  writing  the  above,  there  has  been  a  remarkable  revival 
of  religion  at  this  station,  and  more  than  thirty  members  have 
been  added  to  the  church. 


MISSION   AT  ALLAHABAD.  147 


is  the  design  of  the  missionaries  shortly  to  commence 
a  Christian  colony  of  native  families.  Mr.  Perkins 
preaches  fluently  in  the  native  languages,  and  has  had 
a  pretty  good  share  of  success  in  his  labours  among 
the  people. 

Passing  on  down  the  Ganges  about  one  hundred  and 
sixty  miles,  we  arrived  at  Allahabad,  a  very  pretty  and 
important  station  at  the  confluence  of  the  Jumna  and 
Ganges  rivers,  and  the  head  of  steam  navigation. 
Here  also  there  is  a  large  and  interesting  mission  in 
connection  with  our  own  Board,  and  which  has  been  in 
operation  for  more  than  ten  years.  It  was  commenced 
at  the  close  of  1836,  by  the  late  Rev.  J.  McEwen,  and 
occupied,  on  his  departure  for  America  shortly  after, 
by  the  Rev.  James  Wilson,  who  has  lately  removed 
to  Agra.  At  Allahabad  there  are  now  four  mission- 
aries, the  Rev.  Messrs.  J.  Warren,  J.  E.  Freeman,  J. 
Owen,  and  J.  "Wray,*  and  several  native  assistants,  who 
are  all  actively  and  usefully  employed  in  carrying 
forward  the  various  operations  at  the  station.  There 
are  three  printing  presses  and  a  bookbindery  conducted 
most  successfully,  from  which  the  sacred  Scriptures 
and  tracts  in  the  native  languages  are  issued,  to  instruct 
the  benighted  people  in  the  true  religion.  There  is 
also  a  small  type  foundry  in  connection  with  the  presses. 
Seven  bazaar  schools  have  been  established,  containing 
three  hundred  pupils ;  a  bazaar  school  for  girls,  contain- 
ing sixty  scholars ;  a  large  mission  school  or  college 
for  instruction  in  the  native  languages  and  in  English, 

Mr.  Wray  has  since  returned  to  the  United  States,  and  the 
Rev.  Messrs.  L.  G.  Hay  and  II.  W.  Shaw  have  been  added  to  the 
mission. 


148  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


with  more  than  one  hundred  pupils  in  attendance ;  a 
boys'  orphan  boarding-school  with  twenty-eight,  and 
an  orphan  boarding-school  for  girls  with  twenty-two 
pupils.  Three  neat  mission  chapels  have  been  erected 
in  the  most  public  places  of  concourse  in  the  bazaars, 
where  the  gospel  is  preached  on  the  Sabbath  and  se- 
veral times  during  the  week.  A  new  and  beautiful 
church  edifice  has  just  been  erected  on  the  mission 
premises  near  the  Jumna,  where  services  are  regularly 
conducted  both  in  English  and  Hindustani.  The  re- 
sult of  mission  labour,  as  already  in  part  realized,  has 
been  the  commencement  of  a  Christian  church  among 
the  heathen,  which  now  consists  of  thirty-two  native 
communicants,  besides  a  number  of  East  Indians,  &c. 
It  was  indeed  a  pleasing  sight,  while  spending  a  Sabbath 
at  the  station,  to  see  a  congregation  assembled  of  about 
three  hundred,  made  up  of  the  bazaar  and  orphan 
schools  with  their  teachers  and  others,  listening  to  the 
gospel,  and  behaving  themselves  with  more  decorum 
than  could  be  expected.  We  left  Allahabad  fully  con- 
vinced that  the  mission  field  at  that  place  was  exceed- 
ingly interesting  and  inviting,  and  that  the  brethren 
have  much  ground  for  encouragement  and  hope. 
Their  hands  are  indeed. full,  but  their  labours  will  not 
be  in  vain  in  the  Lord,  if  carried  on  with  perseverance, 
and  in  dependence  on  Him  who  has  all  the  power  in 
his  own  hands. 

The  next  mission  station  to  which  we  came  was 
Mirzap&r,  seventy  miles  below,  and  where  there  are 
civil  and  military  establishments.  The  native  city  is 
large  and  wealthy,  and  a  place  of  great  commerce. 
The  missionaries,  the  Rev.  Messrs.  Mather,  Woolaston, 


MIRZAPUR    AND    CliUNAR    STATIONS.  149 


Budden,  and  Artope,  are  in  connection  with  the  Lon- 
don society.  They  have  several  native  catechists  and 
assistants,  interesting  orphan  schools  for  boys  and 
girls,  schools  for  natives  in  the  bazaar,  and  a  flourish- 
ing free  school  for  instruction  both  in  English  and  the 
native  languages.  For  the  accommodation  of  the  free 
school,  a  large  and  handsome  edifice  has  been  erected 
by  the  benevolence  of  gentlemen  in  India.  Printing 
presses  are  in  operation  by  the  missionaries;  and  in 
addition  to  the  publication  of  the  Scriptures  and  reli- 
gious works,  a  monthly  newspaper  is  issued  in  Hin- 
dustani. Several  bazaar  chapels,  and  a  neat  church  on 
the  mission  compound  have  been  erected,  in  which  the 
gospel  is  regularly  preached.  A  Christian  village  has 
been  commenced,  and  a  native  church  formed,  in  which 
there  are  fifteen  communicants.  This  is  a  very  im- 
portant station,  and  if  properly  sustained,  and  the 
work  carried  forward  with  the  same  spirit  in  which  it 
has  been  commenced,  the  results  will  be  both  cheering 
and  abundant. 

From  Mirzapur  a  day's  sail  brought  us  to  CJiundr, 
the  field  so  long  occupied  by  the  late  Mr.  Bowlcy,  of 
the  Church  mission.  But  although  there  were  a  good 
many  native  Christians  under  his  care  at  the  time  of 
his  death,  there  beino;  no  one  to  assist  or  succeed  him 
in  his  labours,  they  were  soon  dispersed  to  other  places, 
and  the  native  church  is  now  extinct.  This  shows  the 
impropriety  of  leaving  missionaries  to  labour  single- 
handed,  and  of  allowing  the  seed  sown  by  one  mis- 
sionary to  die  for  want  of  proper  care  and  culture  by 
others  ready  to  enter  on  their  labours  and  reap  the 
harvest.     There  is  now  a  Baptist  missionary  named 


150  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


Heinig,  a  German,  at  Chunar,  who  has  established 
several  schools  in  the  bazaar,  and  is  labouring  diligently 
among  the  people. 

The  day  following,  at  an  early  hour,  as  we  sailed 
during  the  night,  we  came  to  Bandras,  which  might 
be  called  the  Jerusalem  of  Hindustan — the  sacred  city 
of  the  Hindus — the  stronghold  of  bigotry,  supersti- 
tion, and  idolatry.  At  that  celebrated  place  we  spent 
two  days,  and  had  an  opportunity  of  conversing  with 
the  missionaries  of  the  Church  of  England,  of  the  Bap- 
tist and  London  Societies,  who  have  been  for  many 
years  planting  the  good  seed  of  the  word  in  a  soil  long 
overgrown  with  the  noxious  errors  and  delusions  of 
Hinduism. 

The  missionaries  of  the  English  church,  the  Kev. 
Messrs.  Smith  and  Lewpolt,  and  their  assistants,  are 
carrying  on  their  labours  with  zeal  and  steadfastness 
in  the  face  of  much  opposition  from  without.  They 
have  just  finished  a  handsome  church  edifice  as  a  proof 
to  the  heathen  that  efforts  for  their  conversion  and 
spiritual  instruction  are  to  be  permanent.  Their  or- 
phan boarding-schools  contain  sixty  boys  and  sixty-five 
girls,  who  spend  half  of  their  time  in  study,  and  half 
in  manual  labour.  Besides  these,  twenty-seven  couples 
from  the  orphan  schools  have  been  married  and  formed 
into  a  Christian  village  called  "  Isdl  Gfunj" — the 
meaning  of  which  is  a  "  Treasure  of  Christians ;"  and 
truly  a  valuable  treasure  it  is  to  find  a  band  of  the  dis- 
ciples of  Jesus  in  such  a  city  as  Banaras,  wholly  given 
to  idolatry.  These  professed  followers  of  the  Re- 
deemer are  able  to  support  themselves  by  their  industry ; 
and  they  will,  it  is  hoped,  form  the  nucleus  of  a  much 


.  .  1 


MISSION   AT   BANlRAS.  151 


larger  community  to  be  collected  in  due  time  from  the 
ranks  of  heathenism.  Day  schools  also  for  heathen 
children  are  conducted  by  the  missionaries ;  and  the 
gospel  is  preached  regularly  in  the  bazaars,  and  during 
itinerancies  in  the  surrounding  districts. 

■At  Ban&ras  there  are  four  London  missionaries,  the 
Rev.  Messrs.  Shurman,  Kennedy,  Ullman,  and  Droese, 
with  three  native  assistants.  They  have  also  finished 
a  large  church  building,  erected  by  the  benevolence  of 
Christians  in  India.  They  have  orphan  schools  con- 
taining twenty-three  pupils,  and  a  day  school  for 
heathen  girls,  with  thirty  in  attendance.  The  bazaar 
schools  are  ten  in  number,  with  two  hundred  and 
eighty  pupils ;  and  in  addition  to  these,  they  have  a 
central  school  in  the  heart  of  the  city,  containing  one 
hundred  and  sixty  boys,  sixty  of  whom  study  English. 
Most  of  the  pupils  attend  on  the  Sabbath  services  held 
in  the  chapels,  and  the  native  teachers  are  instructed 
by  the  missionaries.  In  all  the  schools,  Christian 
books  are  studied,  and  important  portions  of  them 
committed  to  memory.  Three  evenings  in  the  week 
the  gospel  is  preached  in  the  city  chapels,  and  two 
services  in  Hindust&ni  and  one  in  English  are  held 
every  Sabbath  in  the  mission  church.  The  native 
church  that  has  been  organized  has  fifteen  members  in 
full  communion. 

The  Baptist  mission  at  Ban&ras  consists  of  one 
European  and  one  East  Indian  missionary,  and  one 
catechist.  They  have  four  bazaar  schools,  containing 
two  hundred  and  fifty  pupils,  and  an  English  school 
with  fifty  in  attendance,  and  a  small  native  church. 
They  are  just  now  erecting  substantial  mission  build- 


152 


MISSIONS    IN   HINDUSTAN. 


ings  and  school-houses,  and  thus  preparing  to  carry  on 
with  still  greater  efficiency  the  good  work  in  which 
they  have  been  actively  engaged. 

At  G-hdzepiir,  a  short  distance  below  Banaras,  we 
visited  the  Rev.  Messrs.  Huebner  and  Reutkar,  mis- 
sionaries of  the  Berlin  Society ;  but  as  they  have  not 
been  long  at  the  place,  but  little  progress  has  been 
made.  They  seemed  to  be  active  and  intelligent  men, 
and  are  preparing  for  future  usefulness. 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Sternberg,  of  Arrah,  and  Mr.  Bau- 
mann,  of  Chuprdh,  German  missionaries,  we  had  not 
the  pleasure  of  seeing,  but  we  learned  that  they  are 
well  employed  in  their  respective  fields  of  labour. 

At  Patna,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Beddy,  a  Baptist  missionary, 
is  still  labouring  successfully,  and  has  gathered  a  num- 
ber of  native  Christians  around  him.  He  has  also 
established  a  very  interesting,  "Female  Orphan  Re- 
fuge," which  contained  thirty-six  pupils.  The  institu- 
tion seems  to  be  managed  admirably,  and  is  now  begin- 
ning to  yield  a  good  degree  of  promising  fruit — ten 
during  the  past  year  having  come  forward  to  make  a 
profession  of  their  faith  in  Christ.  When  at  the  sta- 
tion, a  circumstance  occurred  which  greatly  delighted 
me.  On  passing  round  privately  between  sermons  on 
the  Sabbath  to  look  at  the  institution,  I  heard  the 
voice  of  prayer,  and  on  turning  a  corner  of  the  build- 
ing I  found  that  the  pious  girls  were  holding  a  social 
prayer  meeting.  One  was  leading  the  devotions  in 
her  own  tongue  with  much  propriety,  while  the  rest 
were  bowing  with  their  heads  to  the  ground  according 
to  the  custom  in  the  East.  The  scene  was  one  which 
could  not  fail  to  be  interesting  to  any  Christian  heart. 


MISSION   AT   BERHAMPUR.  153 


The  next  mission  station,  about  eighty  miles  down 
the  river,  is  Monghyr,  where  the  Rev.  Messrs.  Law- 
rence and  Parsons,  Baptist  missionaries,  are  labouring 
at  present.  They  are  both  well  qualified  and  devoted 
missionaries,  and  are  doing  much  to  promote  the 
spiritual  welfare  of  the  European  invalids  at  the  sta- 
tion, as  well  as  the  natives,  and  they  have  reaped  con- 
siderable fruit  from  both.  They  have  several  native 
preachers  under  their  care,  who  greatly  strengthen 
their  hands,  and  aid  them  in  their  labours  among  the 
heathen.  They  have  native  schools  and  chapels  in 
the  bazaars,  where  the  gospel  is  preached  almost  daily. 

From  Monghyr,  a  sail  of  six  days  and  nights  brought 
us  by  the  towns  of  Bh&gulpur  and  Rajmahal  to  Ber- 
Jidmpur,  the  next  mission  station  on  the  river,  occupied 
by  the  Rev.  Messrs:  Hill  and  Lessel,  of  the  London 
Society.  They  are  assisted  in  their  labours  by  three 
catechists  and  several  teachers.  At  this  station,  a  few 
years  ago,  there  was  considerable  inquiry  in  the  native 
community  on  the  subject  of  religion,  and  a  movement 
toward  a  profession  of  Christianity  by  whole  villages, 
which  led  the  missionaries  to  anticipate  the  most  cheer- 
ing results.  But  no  sooner  had  preparations  been 
made  to  instruct  inquirers  in  the  true  way,  than  the 
agents  of  the  Church  of  Rome,  or  rather  of  the  Man 
of  Sin,  the  Jesuits,  who  are  always  more  on  the  look 
out  to  plunder  and  proselyte  in  Protestant  missions 
than  to  convert  the  heathen,  by  offering  bribes,  and 
making  fair  promises  to  the  catechists,  drew  away 
three  of  them  and  a  large  number  of  the  young  in 
quirers.  Thus,  we  see  that  Roman  priests  in  Hindus- 
tan, claiming  to  be  of  the  true  and  the  only  legitimate 


r^n 


154  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


apostolic  descent,  can  condescend  to  the  mean  business 
of  deceiving  and  plundering  the  folds  of  Christian  mis- 
sions, and  of  scattering  the  sheep  collected  from  the 
jungles  of  heathenism  by  the  efforts  of  Protestants ! 
What  a  proof  is  this  of  the  immutability  of  popery,  and 
that  it  remains  the  same  at  all  times  and  in  all  places 
— the  same  on  the  banks  of  the  Ganges  as   on  the 
banks  of  the  Tiber !     Let  not  Protestants  be  deceived 
by  the  garb  which  it  has  assumed  in  the  United  States 
of  America.     It  is   a  wolf  still  in  sheep's   clothing. 
By  its  own  declared  principles  of  infallibility,  its  re- 
formation is  impossible  !     But  although  this  shock  to 
the  station  at  Berhamptir  was  severe  at  the  time,  and 
annoying  to  the  missionaries,  it  has  been  sustained. 
The  mission  schools  are  rising  in  the  estimation  of  the 
people,  while  the  popish  establishment  has  been  broken 
up.     Fresh  applications  are  being  made  from  villages 
for  teachers ;  and  in  one  case  the  people  proposed  to 
convert  their  idol  temple  into  a  school  house.     The 
missionaries  have  three  village  schools  with  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  pupils,   an  English  school  with  thirty- 
six  pupils  in  attendance,  an  asylum  for  orphan  chil- 
dren,  containing  twenty-three  males    and  seventeen 
females ;  a  native  Christian  church,  numbering  fourteen 
members  ;  and  a  village  on  a  Christian  foundation  with 
about  ninety  inhabitants.     Religious  instruction  en- 
ters largely  into  the  exercises  of  all  the  schools,  and 
the  missionaries  are  indefatigable  in  making  known 
the  gospel  in  the  city  and  surrounding  villages.     The 
little   Christian   colony  and   orphan    schools   support 
themselves,  in  a  great  measure,  by  the  cultivation  and 
manufacture  of  arrow  root,  by  the  produce  of  the  mis- 


MISSION   AT   CUTWA,    ETC.  155 


sion  farm,  and  by  the  manufacture  of  tape  and  bobbin. 
After  all  the  difficulties  through  which  the  mission  has 
passed,  it  is  still  in  a  pretty  prosperous  state,  and  with 
the  divine  blessing,  is  destined,  we  trust,  to  spread 
light  and  life  among  the  dark  and  spiritually  dead  in- 
habitants of  the  land. 

At  CuUva,  where  the  Rev.  Mr.  Carey,  son  of  the 
late  Dr.  Carey,  has  laboured  for  a  long  time,  we  were 
unable  to  gain  any  information,  as  he  was  then  absent 
from  the  station  on  a  missionary  tour. 

Proceeding  down  the  stream,  we  passed,  at  some 
distance  to  the  left,  the  district  of  Krishnagur,  where 
a  few  years  past,  the  whole  community  for  many  miles 
around,  including  a  great  number  of  villages,  cast  away 
the  gods  in  which  they  had  trusted,  and  embraced  the 
gospel.  Missionaries  and  teachers  were  supplied  by 
the  Society  of  the  Church  of  England,  and  they  con- 
tinue to  cultivate  this  promising  field  with  much  success. 
It  was  cause  of  regret  that  time  would  not  permit  us  to 
turn  aside,  and  witness  the  results  of  missionary  labour 
in  this  little  oasis  in  the  midst  of  the  moral  desert. 

Arriving  at  Culna,  we  remained  for  several  hours  to 
examine  the  prosperous  English  and  Bengali  school  in 
connection  with  the  Free  Church  of  Scotland,  and  were 
much  pleased  with  the  proficiency  that  many  of  the 
young  men  had  made  in  the  elementary  branches  of 
education.  Their  knowledge  of  the  leading  facts  of 
Scripture  and  of  general  history  and  geography,  would 
have  been  creditable  to  youth  of  their  age  even  in  a 
Christian  land.  The  school  numbered  more  than  one 
hundred  pupils. 

At  Chinsurah,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Bradbury,  of  the  Lon- 


156  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


don  Society,  is  labouring  among  the  natives  and  East 
Indians.  During  the  numerous  itinerancies  he  has 
made  in  the  district,  which  is  considered  to  be  the 
most  populous  in  India,  he  has  found  the  people  re- 
spectful and  attentive  to  the  gospel  message,  and  also 
anxious  to  obtain  the  Christian  Scriptures.  In  this 
place  and  its  vicinity,  the  people  are  better  educated 
than  usual,  and  it  is  hoped  that  the  diffusion  of  divine 
knowledge  will  be  successful  in  turning  many  from 
the  service  of  dumb  idols  to  the  service  of  the  living 
God. 

A  few  hours  sail  from  Chinsurah  brought  us  to  Se- 
rdmpfir,  which  was  not  only  the  cradle,  but  for  many 
years  the  principal  seat  of  missionary  operations  in  the 
East.  Here  I  found  that  a  sad  change  had  taken 
place  during  the  ten  years  that  had  passed  since  my 
last  visit  to  this  interesting  spot.  The  last  of  the  mis- 
sionary lights,  Ward,  Carey,  and  Marshman,  had  been 
extinguished,  and  scarcely  a  trace  of  their  devoted 
labours  is  now  to  be  seen  at  the  station,  where  for  more 
than  thirty  years  they  united  their  energies  and  their 
prayers  for  the  evangelization  of  the  Hindus.  A  few 
native  Christians  still  remain;  and  doubtless  the  in- 
fluence they  exerted  is  felt  far  and  wide  over  the  land, 
and  will  spread  and  widen  until  the  latest  posterity ; 
but  from  this  circumstance  we  may  learn  an  important 
lesson,  the  necessity  of  persevering  in  missionary 
efforts,  and  of  supplying  men  to  take  the  place  of  those 
who  are  called  away  from  their  labours,  in  order  to 
maintain  the  ground  already  gained  from  the  kingdom 
of  Satan,  and  to  make  still  further  progress  into  the 
kingdom  of  darkness. 


CALCUTTA — SCHOOL   EXAMINATION.  157 


Early  on  the  morning  of  the  following  day  we  ar- 
rived in  Calcutta,  and  having  learned  that  the  schools 
of  the  London  missionaries  in  the  district  of  Bhawani- 
pur  were  to  be  examined  that  day,  I  proceeded  thither 
without  delay,  and  had  the  pleasure  of  witnessing  a 
scene  that  was  deeply  interesting.  More  than  seven 
hundred  boys  had  assembled  for  examination  in  the 
various  branches  of  study,  both  in  English  and  Bengali, 
and  they  acquitted  themselves  in  a  manner  which 
showed  that  instruction  had  not  been  lost  upon  them. 
Their  knowledge  of  the  Scriptures  was  extensive  and 
accurate,  and  their  views  of  the  leading  doctrines  of  the 
gospel  such  as  to  show,  when  placed  in  contrast  with 
the  errors  and  absurdities  of  their  own  Shasters,  how 
little  they  respected  Hinduism,  and  how  much  their 
judgments,  at  least,  were  in  favour  of  Christian  truth. 
On  retiring  from  the  place,  we  were  more  than  ever 
convinced  that  the  native  community  in  Calcutta  is 
not  far  from  an  immense  moral  change ;  that,  in  fact, 
large  masses  of  society  are  already  in  a  transition 
state,  and  that  the  leaven  of  sound  religious  instruc- 
tion, now  so  extensively  diffused  among  the  most  in- 
fluential in  society,  will,  with  the  divine  blessing,  ere 
long  show  itself  in  the  conversion  of  many,  who  will 
become  efficient  instruments  in  spreading  the  gospel 
among  their  idolatrous  countrymen  in  other  quarters. 
And  this  impression  was  only  more  and  more  deepened 
during  our  stay  in  Calcutta,  by  what  we  were  permitted 
to  witness  of  the  labours  and  results  of  other  missions. 
A  private  examination  of  the  admirably  conducted  mis- 
sion school  of  the  Free  Church  of  Scotland,  under  the 

Ilev.  Dr.  Duff  and  his  able  associates,  and  one  held 

14 


158  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


in  public  in  the  Town  Hall,  when  more  than  one 
thousand  pupils  were  present,  many  of  whom  are  pro- 
found scholars  in  the  highest  branches  of  education, 
was  not  only  deeply  interesting,  but  well  calculated  to 
cheer  the  hearts  of  all  who  long  and  pray  for  the  con- 
version of  India.  There  is  certainly  a  considerable 
movement  among  the  dry  bones  in  Calcutta.  May 
the  Spirit  of  God  breathe  upon  them  that  they  may 
live,  and  stand  up  an  exceeding  great  army  of  Chris- 
tian men,  who  will  let  their  light  shine  all  around,  until 
the  dark  deeds  of  heathenism  shall  hide  their  heads  as 
ashamed,  and  multitudes  flock  to  the  standard  of  the 
glorious  gospel. 

These  schools  and  efforts  of  the  London  and  Free 
Church  missionaries,  are  only  specimens  of  like  efforts 
put  forth  for  the  evangelization  of  India,  by  the  mis- 
sionaries of  the  Church  of  England,  of  the  Established 
Church  of  Scotland,  and  of  the  Baptist  Society  in 
Calcutta.  All  of  them  have  large  English  and  verna- 
cular schools,  orphan  boarding-schools,  and  interesting 
native  churches,  to  which  the  Lord  continues  to  add, 
slowly  to  be  sure  as  yet,  but  regularly  and  increasingly, 
such  as  shall  be  saved.  We  may  take  this  occasion 
also  to  remark,  that  all  the  missionaries  with  whom  we 
have  had  the  pleasure  of  an  acquaintance,  both  in 
Calcutta,  and  at  other  places  in  India — and  these  are 
the  representatives  of  nearly  all  the  large  missionary 
societies  in  the  world — are  excellent  and  devoted  men, 
living  and  labouring  together  in  much  harmony  as 
brethren,  having  one  common  faith  and  hope,  and 
striving  to  promote  one  common  object,  the  conversion 
of  the  heathen  to  God,  and  the  establishment  of  the 


HARMONY  AMONG   MISSIONARIES.  159 


Messiah's  reign  over  the  millions  of  Hindustan  that 
are  still  bowing  down  to  idols,  and  passing  on  to  eter- 
nity, without  God  and  without  hope.  Nor  will  the 
labours  and  prayers  of  such  men  be  in  vain.  The  first 
fruits  have  already  been  gathered,  and  an  abundant 
harvest  awaits  those  who  sow  in  faith  and  patiently 
wait  in  the  use  of  the  means  appointed  by  the  Church's 
Head. 


160 


MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

Brief  account  of  the  Lodi&na  mission  in  the  north-west  provinces 
of  India — First  missionaries  sent  out — Lodiana  selected  as  a 
station — Reinforcement  of  missionaries — New  stations  com- 
menced— Additional  reinforcements — Stations  now  occupied — 
Instrumentalities  employed  to  evangelize  the  heathen — Preach- 
ing the  gospel — Bazaar  preaching,  how  conducted — Regular 
services  on  the  Sabbath — Itinerations  through  distant  districts 
— Strange  mode  of  travelling — Distribution  of  Scriptures  and 
tracts — Attendance  at  religious  fairs — Annual  mela  at  Hardwar 
— Interesting  labours  at  that  celebrated  place  of  pilgrimage — 
Schools,  English  and  vernacular — Male  and  female  boarding- 
schools — Happy  results — The  press — Its  operations  extensive 
— Works  translated,  published,  and  distributed — Native  churches 
formed — Presbyteries  organized — The  missionary  enterprise  no 
romance — How  to  be  undertaken  and  conducted — Causes  of 
thanksgiving  and  of  encouragement — A  great  preparatory  work 
accomplished — The  enterprise  of  new  settlers  in  America  com- 
pared with  that  of  Christian  missionaries — Want  of  immediate 
success  no  cause  of  discouragement — The  gospel  destined  to 
triumph  over  all  opposition  and  to  subdue  the  world  to  Christ. 


Having  enjoyed  the  pleasure  of  conducting  our 
readers  from  Sah&ranpur  to  Calcutta,  and  of  pointing 
out  some  of  the  operations  and  results  at  a  number  of 
missionary  stations  on  the  way,  we  would  now  invite 
them  to  accompany  us  back  again  to  the  far  north-west 
of  Hindustan,  while  we  briefly  describe  the  progress 
and  prospects  of  the  Lodi&na  mission. 

This  mission,  as  well  as  others  in  India,  under  the 
care  and  supervision  of  the  General  Assembly  of  the 


LODIANA   MISSION.  161 


Presbyterian  Church  in  the  United  States  of  America, 
is  ecclesiastically  organized  on  the  scriptural  basis  of 
Presbyterianism.  The  Board  of  Missions  in  America, 
however,  is  not  exclusive  or  sectarian  in  its  character, 
but  with  a  Christian  liberality  becoming  the  age,  it 
allows  missionaries  from  other  branches  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church,  orthodox  in  character,  to  go  out 
under  its  auspices,  and  labour  under  its  direction,  while 
their  ecclesiastical  relations  to  the  church  that  sends 
them  forth,  remain  unchanged.  Since  the  year  1835, 
missionaries  belonging  to  the  Reformed  Presbyterian 
Church  have  been  labouring  in  this  mission,  princi- 
pally at  Sahdranpur,  and  nothing  but  the  utmost  har- 
mony and  good  feeling  has  existed  among  the  mis- 
sionaries in  the  field,  and  the  Boards  of  their  respective 
churches  at  home. 

The  first  missionaries  to  India,  the  Rev.  John  C. 
Lowrie  and  the  Rev.  William  Reed,  were  sent  out  in 
1833,  and  being  invested  by  the  Society  with  full  au- 
thority to  select  any  part  of  Hindustan  that  might 
seem  most  suitable  and  encouraging,  as  their  field  of 
labour,  they  finally,  after  much  prayer  and  inquiry, 
and  in  accordance  with  the  advice  of  Christian  friends, 
selected  the  north-west  provinces,  almost  on  the  fron- 
tier of  Hindustan,  and  about  fourteen  hundred  miles 
from  Calcutta,  as  the  seat  and  scene  of  their  future 
labours.  In  that  distant  region  no  missionary  had 
settled,  and  among  that  people,  unless  by  a  few  tran- 
sient visits  of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Thompson,  a  Baptist 
Missionary  at  Delhi,  none  had  ever  preached  the 
gospel  of  Christ.     Of  these  two  first  missionaries  to 

India,  one,  the  Rev.  W.  Reed,  died  shortly  after  his 

14* 


162 


MISSIONS    IN   HINDUSTAN. 


arrival  in  the  East ;  and  the  other,  the  Rev.  J.  C. 
Lowrie,  after  commencing  his  labours  at  Lodi&na,  was 
obliged,  in  consequence  of  a  failure  of  health,  to  re- 
turn home  about  two  years  afterward,  and  is  still 
living  and  usefully  employed  in  the  same  cause,  as  one 
of  the  secretaries  of  the  Board  in  New  York. 

In  1834,  a  reinforcement  of  two  missionaries,  viz. 
the  Rev.  James  Wilson  and  the  Rev.  John  Newton, 
was  sent  out,  and  they  are  both  still  actively  and  use- 
fully employed  in  the  great  work  to  which  they  have 
devoted  their  lives  and  energies.     In  1835,  another 
reinforcement  of  four  missionaries,  the  Rev.  Messrs. 
Rogers,  Jamieson,  Porter,  and  the  writer,  came  out  to 
the  same  field.     On  our  arrival  two  new  stations  were 
taken  up,  one  at  Saharanpur,  on  the  plains  of  India, 
about  one  hundred  and  thirty  miles  in  a  south-east  di- 
rection from  Lodiana,  and  the  other  at  Sabathu,  on 
the  Himalaya  mountains.    In  1838,  three  missionaries, 
viz.  the  Rev.  J.  Caldwell,  Mr.  James  Craig,  teacher,  and 
Mr.  R.  Morris,  printer,  joined  the  mission;  and  since 
then  five  more  have  arrived  at  different  times,  viz.  the 
Rev.  Messrs.  L.  Janvier,  A.  Rudolph,  J.  H.  Morrison, 
C.  W.  Forman,  John  S.  Woodside,  and  J.  II.  Orbison. 
Of  the  above  missionaries,  with  their  wives,  who  have 
been  connected  with  this  mission,  one  has  been  labour- 
ing for  a  number  of  years  lower  down  the  country,  at 
Allahabad,  and  now  at  Agra ;  some  have  been  com- 
pelled to  return  to  the  United  States  in  consequence 
of  a  failure  of  health ;  and  some  have  been  called  away 
from  their  labours  on  earth  to  their  reward  in  heaven. 
The  number  of  ordained  ministers  at  present  in  con- 
nection with  this  mission  is  twelve,  viz.  at  Lodidna, 


LODIANA   MISSION.  163 


J.  Newton,  J.  Porter,  L.  Janvier,  A.  Rudolph,  C.  W. 
Forman,  and  J.  H.  Orbison.  At  Sahdranpi'ir,  J.  R. 
Campbell,  J.  Caldwell,  and  J.  S.  Wpodside.  At  Sa- 
bdthu,  J.  II.  Morrison.  At  Ambala,  J.  M.  Jamieson. 
At  Jalandar,  Golok  Nath.*  In  addition  to  this  mis- 
sionary strength,  the  -work  is  promoted  by  a  number 
of  catechists  at  the  stations,  most  of  whom  have  been 
raised  up  in  the  orphan  schools,  and  educated  expressly 
for  this  purpose.  It  may  be  well  also  to  mention  in 
this  connection,  that  the  Rev.  J.  Caldwell  commenced 
a  mission  station  at  Meerut,  and  continued  there  for 
several  years,  until  the  autumn  of  1846,  when  that 
post  was  given  up  and  he  returned  to  Sahdranpur, 
where  he  had  formerly  laboured. 

The  city  of  Lodiana,  from  which  the  mission  takes 
its  name,  being  the  place  where  operations  were  first 
commenced,  is  situated  in  lat.  31  North,  and  long.  76 
East  from  London.  It  is  a  thriving  place,  and  con- 
tains at  present  about  fifty  thousand  inhabitants,  many 
of  whom  are  Kashmeris  and  Sikhs.  There  is  also  a 
military  cantonment  adjoining  the  town,  containing 
several  corps  of  European  and  native  soldiers.  In  ad- 
dition to  four  dwellings  erected  on  the  mission  pre- 
mises, there  is  a  large  printing  establishment,  with  a 
bookbindery,  a  church,  and  school-house,  an  orphan 
female  school,  a  poor-house,  and  the  commencement 
of  a  Christian  village.  A  large  church  also,  as  well 
as  several  chapels,  has  been  erected  in  the  city,  so 


*  Shortly  after  writing  the  above,  the  mission  decided  on  com- 
mencing a  station  at  Lahor,  the  capital  of  Panjab.  Mr.  Newton 
and  Mr.  Forman  arc  now  labouring  at  that  city. 


164  MISSIONS    IN   HINDUSTAN. 


that  the  preparations  for  carrying  on  missionary  ope- 
rations extensively  are  almost  complete. 

At  Sahdranp&r,  the  place  of  my  own  residence 
during  the  last  thirteen  years,  a  very  handsome  piece 
of  ground  has  been  secured  as  mission  premises,  on 
which  there  are  three  mission  houses,  a  church,  school- 
house,  houses  for  native  assistants,  and  an  orphan 
boarding  school  for  boys.  A  church  also  of  a  hand- 
some and  permanent  kind  has  been  lately  built  in  the 
city,  where  the  gospel  is  preached  daily,  and  -where, 
in  adjoining  apartments,  there  are  abundant  accommo- 
dations for  vernacular  schools.  The  city  itself  is  large 
and  respectable.  The  census  taken  in  1846  made  the 
population  to  exceed  eighty-five  thousand,  about  the 
half  of  whom  are  Mohammedans,  and  the  rest  Hindus. 
It  is  the  capital  of  a  large  district,  the  seat  of  the  civil 
courts,  of  the  company's  stud,  and  the  beautiful  bo- 
tanical gardens  which  supply  trees  and  plants  for 
these  provinces. 

Sabdtliu  is  situated  on  one  of  the  lower  ranges  of  the 
Himalaya  mountains,  and  nearly  five  thousand  feet 
above  the  level  of  the  sea.  Although  its  population 
does  not  probably  exceed  five  thousand,  it  is  one  of 
the  largest  villages  in  those  hilly  regions.  There  are 
a  mission  dwelling,  church,  and  poor-house  at  the  sta- 
tion, and  opportunities  in  abundance  to  preach  the 
gospel  among  the  people. 

More  than  two  years  ago,  shortly  after  the  conquest 
of  the  Panjab,  a  missionary  station  was  commenced  at 
Jalandar,  on  the  western  side  of  the  Sutledge,  and 
about  forty  miles  from  Lodiana,  and  a  native  ordained 
preacher  sent  to  occupy  the  station,  whose  operations 


AGENCY   EMPLOYED.  165 


are  under  the  general  superintendence  of  the  brethren 
at  Lodiana.  A  house  for  the  missionary,  and  a  build- 
ing which  answers  the  purpose  of  a  school-house  and 
church  have  been  erected,  and  a  large  amount  of  funds 
contributed  by  Christian  friends  in  this  country  toward 
the  support  of  this  station. 

A  new  station  has  been  commenced  lately  at  Am- 
bala,  which  is  situated  almost  in  the  very  centre  of  our 
mission,  and  where,  for  many  years,  it  has  been  the 
design  of  the  Board  to  commence  operations.  It  is  a 
respectable  and  thriving  town,  and  promises  to  be  an 
interesting  field  of  labour. 

Having  thus  given  a  very  brief  account  of  the  or- 
ganization of  our  mission,  and  the  locality  of  the  re- 
spective stations  that  have  been  occupied,  we  shall 
now  proceed  to  notice  the  different  kinds  of  agency 
employed  by  this  mission  for  the  conversion  and  the 
mental  and  moral  elevation  of  the  heathen.  These 
may  be  included  under  three  general  heads,  viz. 
Preaching  the  gospel ;  the  education  of  the  people ; 
and  the  diffusion  of  light  and  knowledge,  not  only  in 
our  own  immediate  localities,  but  in  distant  and  desti- 
tute parts  of  this  immense  country,  by  means  of  the 
press. 

We  place  the  preaching  of  the  gospel  first  in  this 
system  of  means  for  the  evangelization  of  the  heathen, 
because  when  our  blessed  and  risen  Saviour  was  about 
to  leave  his  church  on  earth,  and  had  assembled  his 
chosen  ambassadors  to  deliver  to  them  his  parting 
charge,  he  made  the  preaching  of  his  gospel  to  every 
creature  the  most  important  and  imperative  of  all  their 
duties.     He  gave  them  fully  to  understand  that  it  was 


166  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


through  the  foolishness  of  preaching  it  hath  pleased 
God  to  save  them  that  believe ;  and  that  a  preached 
gospel  was  to  be  made  the  wisdom  of  God  and  the 
power  of  God  to  salvation  to  every  one  that  believeth, 
whether  Jew  or  gentile.  Attempting  to  comply  with 
this  divine  command — in  imitation  of  apostolic  and 
primitive  practice — and  trusting  in  the  promises  of 
the  Saviour  for  assistance  and  success  in  the  discharge 
of  this  great  and  solemn  trust,  the  members  of  this 
mission  have  endeavoured  to  make  known  the  name 
of  Christ,  and  to  hold  forth  the  word  of  truth  to  the 
ignorant  and  perishing — to  the  self-wise  and  self- 
righteous  heathen,  in  the  bazaars  of  their  crowded 
cities — in  the  narrow  and  filthy  lanes  of  their  miserable 
villages,  at  religious  melas  or  fairs,  before  hundreds  of 
thousands  of  pilgrims  from  all  parts  of  India,  congre- 
gated around  their  polluted  shrines — by  long  itinera- 
tion through  the  land  for  the  purpose  of  conveying  the 
glad  tidings  of  salvation  to  those  who  had  never  heard 
the  name  of  Christ — in  distributing  tracts  and  Scrip- 
tures, and  in  private  conversations  with  those  who 
visit  their  houses.  In  all  these,  and  in  various  other 
ways,  they  have  so  tried  to  preach  the  gospel  as  to 
arrest  the  attention  of  the  thoughtless  multitudes,  and 
direct  them  to  the  only  Saviour.  They  have  tried,  as 
they  have  found  it  practicable,  to  become  all  things  to 
all  men,  that  they  might  by  all  means  save  some,  and 
to  become  servants  to  all,  that  that  they  might  gain 
the  more. 

For  want  of  better  accommodations,  and  partly  as  a 
matter  of  expediency,  a  great  deal  of  the  public  preach- 
ing at  all  the  stations  has  heretofore  been  done  in  the 


PREACHING  IN  THE  BAZAARS.        167 


bazaars.  The  plan  has  been  for  the  missionaries,  ac- 
companied by  the  catechists  and  assistants,  to  proceed 
in  the  after  part  of  the  day  to  the  city,  take  their 
stand  in  different  places  on  the  public  streets,  and 
commence  by  conversing  with  those  around  them  on 
some  subjects  of  common  interest,  so  as  to  engage 
their  attention.  A  crowd  of  passengers  soon  collect 
to  listen  to  the  conversation,  and  as  soon  as  the  num- 
ber becomes  sufficiently  large,  the  missionary  turns 
the  discourse  to  something  of  a  more  serious  nature — 
propounds  some  questions  of  importance  in  religion 
calculated  to  arrest  the  attention  of  the  bystanders, 
and  then  makes  this  the  foundation  of  his  discourse. 
After  speaking  for  an  hour  or  so,  or  as  long  as  his 
lungs  can  labour  in  the  open  air,  and  amidst  the  noise 
and  dust  of  the  street,  he  is  followed  by  the  catechist. 
At  the  close,  objections  made  by  the  hearers  to  what 
has  been  advanced,  are  answered,  and  portions  of  the 
Scriptures  and  tracts  distributed  to  those  who  can 
read,  and  appear  anxious  to  obtain  them  ;  and  should 
any  seem  to  be  impressed  with  the  truth,  and  desirous 
of  further  conversation,  an  invitation  is  given  to  come 
to  our  houses  for  that  purpose.  Thus  the  gospel  has 
been  proclaimed  from  day  to  day  in  the  public  places 
of  concourse,  and  thereby  an  opportunity  has  been 
given  not  only  to  the  citizens  themselves,  but  also  to 
strangers  from  distant  towns  and  villages  to  hear  the 
leading  truths  of  Christianity. 

But  while  this  plan  may  answer  well  enough  for 
some  time  after  missionaries  have  commenced  at  a 
station,  and  while  their  operations  are  still  in  their  in- 
fancy, it  is  the  general  opinion  of  all  in  the  field  that 


168 


MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


it  ought  not  to  be  continued  longer  than  time  will  per . 
mit  for  providing  more  quiet  and  comfortable  accommo- 
dations. Hence  at  nearly  all  our  stations  mission 
churches  and  chapels  have  been  erected,  where  the 
sacred  truths  of  the  gospel  can  be  proclaimed  with 
more  effect  and  solemnity,  and  where  religious  services 
may  be  expected  daily  at  stated  hours. 

In  addition  to  the  labours  performed  in  the  bazaars 
through  the  week,  the  missionaries,  since  the  year 
1840,  have  been  conducting  public  worship  on  the 
Sabbath,  according  to  the  forms  of  the  Presbyterian 
church,  not  only  for  the  benefit  of  the  native  Chris- 
tians under  their  care,  but  also  with  the  design  of 
leading  others  to  a  knowledge  of  the  truth  as  it  is 
in  Jesus.  In  these  services  the  same  solemnity  that 
is  manifested  in  the  house  of  God  in  Christian  lands 
is  to  a  great  degree  secured,  and  all  things  con- 
nected with  the  duties  of  the  sanctuary  are  conducted 
decently  and  in  order,  while  a  good  opportunity  is 
enjoyed  of  delivering  gospel  truths  in  their  proper 
connection — of  showing  their  relation  to  and  harmony 
with  each  other,  and  of  making  deep  and  permanent 
impressions  on  the  minds  of  the  hearers. 

Not  satisfied,  however,  with  efforts  for  the  spiritual 
welfare  of  those  only  at  the  stations  where  they  re- 
side, the  missionaries  have  been  in  the  habit  of  spend- 
ino-  a  part  of  every  cold  season,  when  practicable,  in 
itinerating  through  their  extensive  districts  for  hun- 
dreds of  miles  around,  and  of  preaching  the  gospel  to 
multitudes,  and  distributing  books  among  those  who 
had  never  before  heard  these  glad  tidings,  and  who, 


ARRANGEMENTS    FOR   TRAVELLING.  169 


without  such  efforts  on  their  behalf,  would  not  be  likely 
ever  to  learn  the  way  of  salvation. 

Persons  residing  in  the  United  States,  who  have 
been  accustomed  to  perform  long  journeys  in  little 
time  and  with  much  comfort,  by  means  of  canal  boats 
and  steamers  and  railroads,  and  to  find  everywhere 
splendid  hotels  and  sumptuous  fare,  can  have  but  little 
idea  of  the  inconveniences  and  trials  which  missionaries 
endure  on  these  toilsome  itinerancies.  As  in  this 
land  of  patriarchal  habits,  thoroughly  stereotyped  since 
the  days  of  Abraham,  there  is  no  such  thing  as  houses 
of  entertainment  where  missionaries  might  find  accom- 
modations while  on  their  travels ;  and  as,  on  account 
of  the  absurd  customs  and  castes  that  prevail  in  society, 
they  could  not  hope  to  obtain  such  accommodations 
from  the  heathen  for  whose  good  they  labour,  they  are 
compelled  to  live  in  camp  style — to  take  with  them  not 
only  provisions  for  the  journey,  but  the  means  of  pre- 
paring them  in  the  open  field — tents  to  live  in  by  day 
and  night,  and  whatever  else  may  be  necessary  to 
enable  them  to  live  for  months  together  in  the  open 
plain.  To  some,  therefore,  it  may  interesting  to  re- 
ceive a  brief  account  of  the  manner  in  which  mis- 
sionaries travel  on  these  occasions. 

When  about  to  set  out  on  a  preaching  tour,  the  first 
thing  to  be  done  is  to  obtain  a  few  hackeries  or  ox 
carts  for  the  conveyance  of  tents,  provisions,  cooking 
utensils,  dishes,  table,  chairs,  beds,  books,  &c.  &c.  The 
entire  wages  of  a  hackery  with  two  oxen  and  a  man  to 
drive,  is  twenty-five  cents  per  day.  When  the  driver 
and  oxen  are  fed  from  this  sum,  in  the  most  frugal 
manner,   about  six  cents  are  left  toward  the  wages 

15 


170 


MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


of  the  man  and  oxen,  and  the  wear  and  tear  of  the 
vehicle.  But  this  is  a  digression  from  our  subject, 
and  is  mentioned  only  to  show  the  strange  state  of 
things  that  exists  in  this  country,  and  the  low  scale 
of  remuneration  paid  for  native  labour.  When  this 
establishment  moves  forward  on  the  march,  one  man 
accompanies  it,  whose  sole  business  it  is  to  pitch  tents 
and  take  them  down  again ;  another  to  carry  water 
for  the  cattle,  &c,  in  a  goat  skin  fastened  on  his  back ; 
a  third  to  prepare  food  for  the  missionary,  which  he 
does  at  a  fire  kindled  in  the  open  field. 

All  things  being  ready  for  the  journey,  two  of  the 
hackeries  start  about  nine  o'clock  in  the  evening, 
taking  with  them  the  largest  or  day  tent,  books,  pro- 
vision box,  &c,  and  after  travelling  all  night,  at  the 
rate  of  about  two  miles  an  hour,  they  arrive  at  the 
place  appointed — usually  a  distance  of  about  twelve 
to  fifteen  miles — about  daylight  the  following  morn- 
ing. A  place  is  then  selected  for  the  tent  as  close  to 
the  city  as  possible,  and  usually  beneath  the  shade  of 
trees.  A  fire  is  kindled  close  by,  and  the  cook  com- 
mences his  business  for  the  day.  About  two  hours 
before  day  the  missionaries  issue  from  the  small  pall  or 
sleeping  tent  in  which  they  had  found  shelter  during 
the  night,  and  start  on  their  journey.  On  leaving,  the 
tent  is  immediately  pulled  clown,  and  with  the  bedding 
and  other  baggage  remaining  behind,  loaded  on  the 
third  hackery,  which  now  begins  to  move,  and  arrives 
at  the  tenting  ground  by  the  middle  of  the  afternoon, 
in  time  to  have  the  sleeping  pall  erected  for  the  night. 
The  missionaries  usually  get  up  to  the  large  tent  by 
eight  o'clock  in  the  morning,  and  find  their  breakfast 


jjjj«  /    >  ,--^ 


TRAVELLING     IN     INDIA. 


Page  171. 


PREACHING   AT   THE    RELIGIOUS   FAIRS.  171 


prepared.  After  partaking  of  it,  and  engaging  in 
family  prayer,  they  proceed  to  the  bazaars  of  the 
town,  preach  in  several  places  to  crowds  that  as- 
semble around  them,  and  then  invite  the  people  to 
come  to  their  tent  for  books  and  conversation.  The 
after  part  of  the  day  is  generally  spent  in  talking  with 
visitors,  and  in  placing  the  word  of  God  in  the  hands 
of  those  who  can  read.  Should  there  appear  to  be 
considerable  interest  taken  in  the  gospel  message,  an- 
other day  is  spent  at  the  same  place ;  but,  if  not,  the 
large  tent  is  taken  down  in  the  evening,  and  sent  on 
as  before.  In  this  way  the  country  is  intersected,  and 
all  the  most  important  places  within  the  bounds  of  the 
respective  stations  are  visited  from  time  to  time,  and 
an  offer  of  the  gospel  made  to  all  who  come  within  the 
reach  of  our  influence.  By  this  means  the  news  of  sal- 
vation has  sounded  out  to  many  dark  corners  of  this 
land,  and  many  portions  of  precious  truth  have  been 
distributed  among  the  dying  heathen. 

Melas  or  religious  fairs,  held  frequently  within  the 
bounds  of  our  extensive  parishes,  sacred  bathing-places 
and  shrines  of  venerated  saints,  where  thousands  as- 
semble at  stated  times,  have  been  visited  also  by  the 
missionaries.  The  greatest  of  these,  and,  indeed,  one 
of  the  most  celebrated  places  of  pilgrimage  in  all 
India,  is  Ilardwdr,  where,  at  some  of  their  annual 
fairs,  several  millions  of  people  assemble  to  bathe  in 
the  Ganges,  and,  as  they  believe,  to  Avash  away  their 
sins  in  the  sacred  stream.  For  eight  years  we  had 
the  pleasure  of  labouring  at  that  place  in  connection 
with  brethren  from  the  other  stations,  where  usually 
abo\it  two  weeks  were  spent  in  preaching  to  the  pil- 


172  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


grims,  and  placing  in   their  hands  the  word  of  life. 
In  former  times  Ave  took  our  stand  on  the  public  ghauts, 
or  beneath  the  shade  of  the  numerous  temples ;  but 
of  late  years  we  have  had  a  large  canopy  or  tent  which 
was  presented  to  the  mission  for  the  purpose,  and 
there,  from  early  dawn  until  evening,  religious  services 
of  praise  and  prayer,  reading  and  preaching,   have 
been   conducted   alternately  by  the   missionaries— a 
short  period  being  allowed  between  each  service  for 
conversation  with  the  people,  and  for  discussing  the 
important  differences  between  Hinduism  and   Chris- 
tianity.    At  times  we  have  seen  that  large  canopy 
filled  with  Brahmins  and  Pandits — the  literati  of  Hin- 
duism— all  seated  on  mats,  and  an  immense  crowd 
outside  listening,  as  far  as  our  voice  could  be  heard, 
to  the  all  important  truths  of  the  gospel  for  hours  to- 
gether, with  apparent  seriousness.     Indeed,  some  have 
occasionally  been  almost  persuaded  to  become  Chris- 
tians, and  have  appeared  to  be  not  far  from  the  king- 
dom of  heaven  ;  but  the  deceitfulness  of  sin,  the  fasci- 
nations of  idolatry,   and  the  strength   of  caste,  are 
bonds  not  easily  sundered.     Alongside  this  preaching 
tent  there  is  another  where  some  of  the  missionaries, 
with  native  assistants,  are  employed  the  whole  day  in 
distributing  Scriptures  and  tracts  in  various  languages 
and  dialects  to  applicants  from  all  parts  of  this  vast 
empire.     The  number  usually  distributed  at  one  of 
these  fairs  is  about  eight  thousand ;  but  at  the  great 
mela  in  1844,  when  it  was  estimated  that  about  three 
millions  of  people  were  assembled,  the  number  distri- 
buted by  our  mission  amounted  to  more  than  twenty- 
five  thousand.     Thus  the  Scriptures  of  truth,  able  to 


INSTRUCTION   IN   THE    SCHOOLS.  173 


make  wise  unto  salvation,  have  been  placed  in  the 
hands  of  multitudes,  and  by  them  carried  to  distant 
parts  of  the  country  to  which,  in  no  other  way,  they 
could  have  found  access. 

Intimately  connected  with  the  preaching  of  the  gos- 
pel is  the  instruction  of  the  young  in  schools ;  and  to 
this  department  of  their  labour  the  missionaries  have 
not  been  inattentive.  Schools,  both  English  and  ver- 
nacular, orphan  boarding  schools,  and  day  schools, 
have  been  carried  on  at  nearly  all  the  stations. 

At  Lodiana  there  is  a  primary  and  high  school,  the 
object  of  which  is  to  impart  to  the  rising  race  a  know- 
ledge of  English  literature  and  science,  and  at  the 
same  time  to  instill  the  principles  and  unfold  the  sys- 
tem of  Christianity.  The  course  of  studies  marked 
out  is  extensive,  though  but  few  have  remained  long 
enough  to  advance  to  the  higher  branches.  It  includes 
English  reading  and  writing,  geography,  grammar, 
arithmetic,  history,  geometry,  algebra,  natural  and 
moral  philosophy,  astronomy,  chemistry,  political  eco- 
nomy, evidences  of  Christianity,  translations,  and  com- 
position. In  connection  with  these,  the  Bible  forms  a 
part  of  the  daily  study  in  all  the  classes. 

The  orphan  girls'  school  at  the  same  place,  which 
has  contained  on  an  average  about  twelve  or  fifteen 
pupils,  is  an  interesting  institution.  In  addition  to 
the  common  branches  of  education,  they  have  been 
taught  to  knit  and  sew,  and  to  perform  household 
duties,  so  as  to  fit  them  for  the  places  to  which  Provi- 
dence may  appoint  them  when  removed  from  the  insti- 
tution. Special  attention  is  paid  to  their  religious 
culture.  Several  have  from  time  to  time  given  evi- 
ls* 


174  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


dences  of  piety,  and  been  received  into  the  church, 
and  seven  have  been  married  to  native  Christians  in 
connection  with  the  mission.  How  different  their 
situation  now  from  what  it  would  have  been  had  they 
remained  in  those  dens  of  crime  and  pollution  from 
which  many  of  them  were  taken  by  the  public  autho- 
rities ;  and  who  that  has  a  Christian's  heart  would  not 
rejoice  to  be  instrumental  in  leading  such  from  the 
paths  of  vice  and  destruction  to  the  knowledge  and 
purity  of  the  gospel  ? 

The  schools  at  Saharanpur  have  been  much  the 
same  as  at  Lodiana,  and  they  have  been  conducted  on 
the  same  principles.  The  English  school  was  opened 
in  January,  1837,  and  although  the  obstacles  to  its 
progress  at  first  were  very  great,  arising  from  the 
strong  prejudices  of  the  people  against  Christianity, 
and  their  fears  of  being  forced  to  embrace  it,  and  thus 
of  losing  their  caste,  yet  it  soon  gained  the  confidence 
of  many,  and  increased  in  numbers  until  forty  pupils 
were  in  attendance.  This  school  has  fluctuated  very 
much,  however,  for  some  years  past,  but  it  has  still 
existed,  and  been  the  means  of  educating  a  number  of 
young  men,  particularly  the  boys  in  the  orphan  school 
in  English  reading,  writing,  history,  geography,  arith- 
metic, algebra,  geometry,  astronomy,  natural  philoso- 
phy, evidences  of  Christianity,  the  sacred  Scriptures, 
and  a  system  of  theology.  Since  the  arrival  of  Mr. 
Woodside,  who  has  now  charge  of  the  English  school, 
it  has  greatly  increased  both  in  numbers  and  interest. 

The  orphan  boys'  school  at  Saharanpur  commenced 
in  1838,  and  has  been  an,  interesting  and  promising 
institution.     For  more  than  eight  years  after  its  or- 


-  I 


ORPHAN   SCHOOL   AT   SAHARANPUR.  175 


ganization,  and  until  the  pupils  were  distributed  to  the 
different  stations,  the  average  number  of  pupils  was 
about  twenty,  most  of  whom  were  saved  from  all  the 
horrors  of  starvation  during  a  famine  which  swept  off 
its  hundreds  of -thousands.  They  were  taken  up  when 
wasted  to  mere  skeletons  by  hunger.  They  were  fed 
and  clothed  and  educated,  and  entirely  supported  by 
the  Juvenile  Foreign  Missionary  Society  in  connection 
with  the  Rev.  Dr.  Wylie's  church,  in  Philadelphia.  As 
they  did  not  when  received  know  a  letter  of  any  lan- 
guage, they  were  educated  first  in  the  Hindustani, 
and  then  in  English,  and  afterward  in  Hindi  and  Per- 
sian, so  as  to  qualify  them  for  usefulness  in  missionary 
labours.  After  some  years  five  of  the  number  were 
received  into  the  church  by  baptism,  after  strict  and 
satisfactory  examination.  One  apostatized  some  time 
after,  but  several  of  the  others  have  since  professed 
Christianity,  and  all  of  those  who  remained  are  now 
usefully  employed  at  the  different  stations,  and  sup- 
porting themselves  by  their  own  industry,  some  as 
catechists,  some  as  assistant  teachers  in  schools,  others 
in  the  printing  office,  bookbindery,  &c.  This  school 
is  still  continued,  and  is  now  under  the  care  of  Mr. 
Caldwell.  Those  at  present  in  the  institution  are  em- 
ployed a  part  of  their  time  in  learning  the  business  of 
cabinet-making,  in  connection  with  education  in  Hin- 
dustani, so  as  to  enable  them  after  some  years  to  earn 
their  own  livelihood.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  those  who 
have  been  well  educated,  who  arc  consistent  members 
of  the  church,  (one  of  them  an  ordained  elder,)  and  at 
present  catechists  and  students  of  theology,  Avill  ere 


176  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


long  be  qualified  to  become  preachers  of  the  gospel  to 
their  benighted  and  idolatrous  countrymen. 

English  schools  have  been  established  and  are  con- 
ducted  at  Ambala  and  Jalandar,  but  at  present  they 
are  not  large.  That  which  was  formerly  in  existence 
at  Sabathu  has  been  given  up. 

Vernacular  day-schools  in  the  bazaars  have  also  been 
tried  at  all  the  stations,  but  on  account  of  the  difficulty 
that  has  heretofore  been  experienced  in  finding  compe- 
tent and  faithful  teachers,  and  in  introducing  the  study 
of  Christian  books,  the  success  has  not  been  great ;  and, 
in  some  cases,  they  have  been  given  up,  until  suitable 
teachers  can  be  raised  up  in  the  mission,  who  will  carry 
out  our  wishes  and  plans  in  these  schools,  and  effi- 
ciently manage  the  youth  under  their  care. 

The  press  in  all  countries,  where  properly  employed, 
is  an  instrumentality  of  great  power  and  importance. 
To  the  missionary,  whose  object  it  is  to  spread  the 
truths  of  the  gospel  among  millions  who  can  never 
hear  his  voice  or  receive  personal  instruction  from  his 
lips,  it  is  essential  as  an  auxiliai-y  ;  it  in  a  measure 
also  supplies  his  lack  of  the  gift  of  tongues  ;  and  it  has 
been  the  happy  means  of  placing  the  word  of  God  and 
important  portions  of  religious  truth  in  many  languages, 
in  the  hands  of  multitudes  who  must  otherwise  have 
remained  ignorant  of  the  great  salvation.  In  the 
printing  establishment  of  this  mission  there  are  three 
superior  presses,  from  which,  during  the  last  ten  or 
twelve  years,  there  have  been  published  about  one 
hundred  editions,  and  more  than  six  hundred  thousand 
copies  of  portions  of  the  Scriptures,  of  tracts  and 
books,  in    six  different  languages,  viz.,  Urdu,  Hindi, 


WORKS   TRANSLATED — NATIVE    CHURCHES.       177 


Panjdbi,  Persian,  Kashmiri,  and  English.  Of  these 
a  considerable  number  are  volumes  of  from  one  hun- 
dred to  more  than  four  hundred  pages ;  and  among 
them,  in  addition  to  the  gospels,  epistles,  psalms,  and 
portions  of  the  Old  Testament,  are  to  be  found  such 
works  as  the  Pilgrim's  Progress,  the  Way  of  Life, 
the  Dairyman's  Daughter,  the  Confession  of  Faith, 
Shorter  Catechism,  &c.  About  sixty  of  the  above 
works — some  original  compositions  and  others  transla- 
tions— have  been  prepared  by  members  of  this  mission, 
and  all,  before  going  to  press,  pass  through  the  hands 
of  a  publishing  committee,  consisting  of  one  missionary 
from  each  station.  The  annual  expenses  of  the  press 
and  bindery  have  generally  amounted  to  between  four 
and  five  thousand  dollars,  and  all  the  books  thus  pub- 
lished are  being  distributed  gratuitously  among  the 
people  in  the  manner  which  we  have  described  above. 
It  is  hoped  the  precious  seed  will  not  all  be  lost,  but 
that  in  due  time  an  abundant  harvest  of  fruit  will  be 
reaped,  and  through  this  powerful  instrumentality 
many  be  brought  to  the  knowledge  of  the  truth  as  it  is 
in  Jesus. 

At  all  the  stations,  small  native  churches  have  been 
organized,  and  thus  a  commencement  has  been  made 
in  establishing  the  Redeemer's  kingdom  in  the  very 
heart  of  heathenism.  At  Lodiana  the  number  of  na- 
tive church  members  is  nineteen.  At  Saharanpiir 
the  native  church  was  reduced  more  than  two  years 
ago,  when  several  of  the  young  men  who  were  mem- 
bers were  sent  to  occupy  fields  of  labour  at  the  other 
stations.  At  present  the  number  of  native  church 
members  is  eight.     Some  East  Indians  also  have  been 


1 1 

I   ! 


178  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


received  to  the  communion  on  examination,  so  that, 
"with  the  mission  families,  the  total  number  of  commu- 
nicants is  seventeen.  The  native  churches  at  the  other 
stations  are  still  smaller,  and  some  of  them  have  been 
but  lately  organized.  Yet  small  as  these  may  seem 
when  compared  with  the  great  and  overflowing  congre- 
gations in  Christian  lands,  to  those  who  are  well  ac- 
quainted with  all  the  difficulties  that  have  to  be  met 
and  overcome  in  this  land  of  moral  night,  and  among 
this  singularly  constituted  people,  even  this  feeble  be- 
ginning affords  ground  of  great  encouragement :  "For 
who  hath  despised  the  day  of  small  things?"  Surely 
not  He  who  has  always  chosen  the  weak  things  of  the 
world  to  confound  the  things  that  are  mighty,  and  who 
from  small  beginnings  is  wont  to  accomplish  his  great 
and  stupendous  purposes.  What  art  thou,  oh  great 
mountain  of  difficulties,  before  our  New  Testament  Ze- 
rubbabel?  Thou  shalt  become  a  plain.  His  hands 
have  laid  the  foundations  of  this  house,  this  infant 
church  among  the  heathen,  and  his  hands  also  shall 
finish  it,  and  he  shall  bring  forth  the  headstone  thereof 
with  shoutings,  crying,  "  Grace,  grace,  unto  it."  Be- 
cause it  will  not  be  accomplished  by  "  might,  nor  by 
power,  but  by  my  Spirit,  saith  the  Lord  of  hosts." 

We  have  stated  that  this  mission  is  Presbyterian  in 
its  character.  And  surely  if  those  in  Christian  lands, 
who  conscientiously  adhere  to  this  system  of  church 
government,  unite  in  benevolent  efforts  for  the  spread 
of  the  gospel,  and  believe  that  Presbyterianism,  as 
distinguished  from  Independency,  Diocesan  Episco- 
pacy or  Prelacy,  is  founded  on  the  word  of  God,  and 
in  accordance  with  the  primitive  practice  of  the  church, 


LODIANA   PRESBYTERY.  179 


it  is  their  duty  to  organize  the  churches  they  may 
gather  from  among  the  heathen  according  to  this 
scriptural  and  apostolic  model.  All  churches  collected 
from  the  heathen  must  necessarily  have  an  organiza- 
tion of  some  kind,  and  certainly  missionaries  are 
bound  to  take  the  Scriptures  in  the  sense  in  -which 
they  understand  them,  as  the  only  rule  to  direct  them 
in  so  important  a  matter  as  the  organization  and  con- 
stitution of  the  Church  of  Christ.  And  this  they 
ought  to  be  permitted  to  do,  without  incurring  the 
odium  of  sectarianism,  while  they  wish  well  to  all 
other  churches  of  Christ  that  hold  the  head  and  preach 
a  pure  gospel ;  and  rejoice  in  their  success  in  the  same 
glorious  work  of  benevolence.  It  is  a  happy  thing 
that,  as  no  branch  of  the  church  is  established  by  the 
government  of  the  United  States,  none  can  be  stigma- 
tized as  sects,  and  that  all  have  a  right  to  judge  for 
themselves  in  matters  between  God  and  their  own 
consciences.  Thus  may  it  ever  be,  under  all  the  go- 
vernments on  earth. 

In  accordance  with  these  views  the  ministerial 
brethren  of  this  mission,  connected  with  the  General 
Assembly  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  the  United 
States  of  America,  formed  themselves,  many  years 
ago,  into  a  presbytery,  called  "  the  Loditina  Presby- 
tery," and  under  its  care,  all  the  native  churches  at 
the  other  stations,  save  that  at  Saharanpvir,  have  been 
placed.  This  presbytery  has  already  had  the  honour 
of  ordaining  to  the  office  of  the  ministry  two  men,  one 
of  them  a  Brahmin  of  the  highest  caste,  who  has 
cl large  of  the  church  at  Jalandar,  and  who  preaches 
eloquently  to  his  idolatrous  countrymen.     The   Lo- 


180  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


diana  Presbytery,  and  the  Presbyteries  of  Allahabad 
and  Furruckabad,  lower  down  the  country,  and  in  con- 
nection with  the  Presbyterian  Board  in  New  York,  are 
all  formed  into  the  synod  of  Northern  India,  in  con- 
nection with  the  Presbyterian  church  in  America. 
This  synod  has  had  two  interesting  meetings ;  at  the 
last  of  which,  in  addition  to  important  matters  trans- 
acted regarding  the  application  of  church  discipline  to 
some  of  the  peculiar  existing  evils  flowing  from  heathen 
practices  and  institutions,  the  Confession  of  Faith  and 
catechisms,  as  embodied  in  a  translation  in  Hindus- 
tani, were  fully  adopted  as  the  constitution  of  their 
native  churches.  This  synod  consists  of  twenty-three 
ministers,  and  four  elders,  and  has  under  its  care  nine 
native  churches. 

On  January  15th,  1841,  the  missionaries  at  Saha- 
ranpur, Rev.  J.  R.  Campbell,  Rev.  J.  Caldwell,  and 
Mr.  James  Craig,  who  had  been  ordained  as  a  ruling 
elder  in  the  Rev.  Dr.  Wylie's  congregation,  Philadel- 
phia, being  all  in  connection  with  the  Reformed  Pres- 
byterian Church  in  the  United  States,  under  advice 
from  the  synod  of  that  body,  formed  themselves  into  a 
presbytery,  called  "  The  Presbytery  of  Saharanpur,  in 
connection  with  the  General  Synod  of  the  Reformed 
Presbyterian  Church  in  North  America."  On  appli- 
cation from  the  native  church  at  Saharanpur,  formed 
in  1839,  it  was  taken  under  the  care  of  presbytery. 
From  the  death  of  Mr.  Craig,  in  1845,  the  regular 
meetings  of  presbytery  were  suspended,  until  the  arri- 
val of  the  Rev.  John  S.  Woodside,  in  1849.  This 
presbytery  has  now  under  its  care  the  five  catechists 
at  the  station,  as  students  of  theology,  who  at  its  stated 


NO    ROMANCE   IN   MISSIONS.  181 


meetings  every  three  months,  deliver  discourses  in 
Hindustani  as  specimens  of  improvement,  and  they  are 
then  examined  by  the  presbytery  as  to  their  particular 
knowledge  of  certain  portions  of  the  Scriptures  that 
have  been  previously  appointed  for  their  perusal. 
Thus  in  due  time  we  hope  to  raise  up  an  indigenous 
ministry,  to  some  extent ;  men  who,  under  the  direction 
of  the  foreign  missionaries,  will  be  able,  by  the  divine 
blessing,  to  do  much  toward  the  spread  of  gospel  truth 
through,  the  length  and  breadth  of  this  extensive 
empire  of  Satan,  and  toward  bringing  to  the  light 
many  who  are  now  sitting  in  the  region  and  shadow 
of  death. 

What  we  now  fear  is  that  these  desultory  and  pro- 
tracted details  may  be  dry  and  uninteresting  to  many 
of  our  readers,  who  may  have  been  expecting  to  hear 
of  a  series  of  animating  and  thrilling  events — of  some- 
thing bordering  on  the  miraculous — of  nations  being 
born  in  a  day,  and  of  whole  tribes  and  districts  casting 
their  idols  to  the  moles  and  to  the  bats.  But,  my  dear 
friends,  we  do  hope  that  the  age  of  the  romance  of 
missions  is  past,  and  that  the  time  has  indeed  come 
when  Christians  can  look  at  the  real  difficulties  and 
discouragements  of  the  missionary  work  in  their  fullest 
extent,  with  calmness  and  composure,  and  are  prepared 
to  meet  with  trials  and  disappointments,  and  to  be 
thankful  for  the  measure  of  success  which  the  Lord 
may  be  pleased  to  grant  to  the  feeble  and  unworthy 
labours  of  their  missionaries.  It  would  have  been  easy 
to  have  thrown  an  air  of  romance  around  this  narra- 
tive, so  as  to  please  the  fancy  and  enlist  the  feelings 
of  imaginative  readers,  but  we  prefer  giving  a  detail 

10 


182  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


of  naked  facts,  so  that  sincere  Christians  may  see  the 
state  and  operations  of  the  missions  in  Northern  India 
just  as  they  are;  and,  if  we  mistake  not,  this  is  the 
very  kind  of  information  that  is  most  wanted  by  the 
true  and  steady  friends  of  missions  at  home. 

And  as  the  age  of  the  romance  of  missions  is  past, 
the  age  of  miracles  in  missionary  work  is  past  also. 
Languages  that  were  acquired  instantaneously  by  the 
special  gift  of  God,  in  the  primitive  days  of  Chris- 
tianity, are  now  to  be  obtained  after  years  of  patient 
and  persevering  study.  Proofs  of  the  divinity  of 
Christianity  that  were  then  given  to  the  outward 
senses  by  miracles,  have  now  to  be  substantiated  by 
long  and  close  arguments,  founded  on  the  evidences  of 
the  Christian  faith.  And  as  the  missionaries  of  the 
gospel  in  that  age  were  few  in  number,  special  success 
was  granted  to  their  labours,  so  as  to  meet  the  press- 
ing exigencies  of  the  cause  at  stake ;  but  now,  that  the 
church  of  Christ  possesses  the  men  and  the  means  in 
abundance  for  the  evangelization  of  the  world,  she 
need  not  expect  the  success  for  which  she  is  so  impa- 
tient, until  she  is  willing  to  make  the  sacrifice  required. 
Nor  is  the  measure  of  success  that  has  been  attained 
in  the  missionary  work  to  be  the  standard  of  our  duty 
in  this  great  enterprise.  It  is  enough  for  us  to  know 
that  He  who  commanded  us  to  go  to  India,  and  to  all 
parts  of  the  world  to  preach  his  gospel,  and  promised 
his  presence  and  his  aid  in  the  difficult  but  delightful 
undertaking,  has  thus  not  only  made  it  our  duty  to 
obey  implicitly,  but  has  so  far  blessed  the  efforts  that 
have  been  made  as  to  show  that  the  work  is  his  own, 
and  meets  with  his  approbation.     It  is  enough  to  know 


fF3 


PROSPECT   OP   GOOD.  183 


that  thousands  of  blind,  and  degraded,  and  perishing 
idolaters  have  been  enlightened,  and  sanctified,  and 
saved ;  and  that  many  of  these  have  died  in  faith  and 
hope,  and  are  now  rejoicing  before  the  throne  on  high. 
It  is  enough  to  know  that  in  less  than  half  a  century 
the  little  one  has  become  a  thousand,  and  the  small  one 
a  strong  nation,  and  that  a  foundation  broad  and  firm 
has  been  laid  in  the  missionary  enterprise  in  India, 
and  much  preparatory  work  accomplished,  which  will 
tell  largely  as  to  results  in  future  years.  It  is  enough 
for  our  encouragement  to  know  that  a  vast  amount  of 
prejudice  against  missions,  both  at  home,  and  in  India, 
has  been  removed;  that  the  timid  and  desponding 
friends  of  the  cause  have  been  aroused  and  cheered ; 
that  religious  and  scientific  education,  which  strikes 
deep  at  the  root  of  a  system  of  idolatry  based  upon 
palpable  falsehoods,  and  which  is  daily  undermining 
and  wearing  out  gross  superstitions,  is  rapidly  spread- 
ing through  the  land,  and  among  the  rising  race ;  that 
such  vast  numbers  of  orphan  youth  have  been  trained, 
and  are  still  in  a  course  of  training  under  missionaries, 
many  of  whom  are  likely  to  become  successful  helpers 
in  the  gospel ;  and  that  so  many,  here  and  there,  have 
been  enabled  through  grace  to  renounce  caste,  and 
family,  and  friends,  and  houses,  and  lands,  for  Christ's 
sake  and  the  gospel's. 

And  here,  while  passing  by  many  instances  that 
might  be  mentioned,  of  what  grace  has  enabled  some 
of  the  Hindus  to  sacrifice  for  the  sake  of  the  gospel — 
a  people  too  who  are  proverbially  selfish — we  cannot 
but  notice  a  remarkable  case  of  this  kind,  which  oc- 
curred lately  in  Calcutta.     A  young  man  of  rank  and 


184  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


fortune,  who  had  been  accustomed  to  move  in  the 
higher  circles  of  Hindu  society  in  the  metropolis  of 
British  India,  had  obtained  a  liberal  education  in  Eng- 
lish in  one  of  the  government  colleges ;  and  although 
the  Bible  is  positively  shut  out  of  these  institutions,  he 
found  access  to  the  sacred  page,  and  there  learned,  not 
only  his  condition  as  a  sinner  against  God,  but  the 
way  of  salvation  through  the  Lord  Jesus.  He  also 
learned  that  to  be  a  Christian  he  must  not  only  re- 
nounce idolatry,  but  every  thing  that  stood  in  the  way 
of  a  sincere  and  upright  profession,  and  be  willing  to 
give  up  all,  if  necessary,  in  order  to  follow  the  Saviour 
in  the  midst  of  the  crooked  and  perverse  generation 
among  whom  his  lot  was  cast.  Entertaining  these 
feelings  he  came  to  the  London  missionaries  in  Cal- 
cutta, and  asked  to  be  baptized.  Aware  of  his  high 
standing  in  society,  and  of  the  personal  sacrifices  that 
would  necessarily  result  from  his  making  a  profession 
of  Christianity,  and  fearing  that  he  had  not  fully 
counted  the  cost  of  such  a  step,  they  reminded  him  of 
the  consequences  that  must  follow  such  a  measure — of 
the  wealth  that  must  be  sacrificed,  (about  fifty  thousand 
dollars  in  personal  property,  and  more  than  twice  that 
in  estates,  of  which  he  would  in  due  time  become  the 
heir,)  and  they  therefore  intimated  the  propriety  of 
postponing  the  baptism  until  time  would  be  given  to 
weigh  the  matter  fully.  His  reply  was  prompt  and 
characteristic.  He  said  he  had  not  come  to  this  con- 
clusion in  haste;  that  he  had  thought  much  and 
prayed  long  about  the  subject ;  that  he  had  put  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  and  eternal  happiness  in  the  one 
scale,  and  all  his  wealth  and  honours  in  the  other,  and 


EVENTUAL   TRIUMPH   OF   THE   GOSPEL.  185 


that  Christ  outweighed  them  all — that  all  were  lighter 
than  air  and  vanity;  and  that  whatever  the  conse- 
quences might  he,  he  had  resolved  to  profess  Christ, 
and  devote  himself  to  his  blessed  service !  This  same 
young  man,  who  might  have  been  riding  through  the 
streets  of  Calcutta  like  the  nobles  of  the  land,  was 
employed  by  the  missionaries,  when  I  passed  through 
that  place,  on  a  salary  of  about  twelve  dollars  a  month, 
from  which  he  obtained  his  own  support,  and  with  this 
and  Christ  he  was  content  to  live  and  to  labour  to 
bring  his  countrymen  to  embrace  this  great  salvation. 
"Who,  among  our  readers,  have  made  such  sacrifices  for 
Christ  ?  Can  that  man  be  actuated  by  the  same  faith, 
can  he  claim  to  possess  the  same  spirit,  who  refuses  to 
part  with  a  small  portion  of  his  wealth  to  send  the 
gospel  to  the  perishing  Hindus?  Let  conscience 
answer. 

In  view  then  of  all  that  we  have  mentioned,  and 
knoAving  that  the  heathen  of  Hindust&n  must  certainly 
be  given  to  Christ  for  his  inheritance — that  He  who 
has  promised  to  subdue  the  nations  to  himself,  is  able 
also  to  perform,  and  will  perform — knowing  that,  in 
due  time,  he  will  make  bare  his  arm  in  the  sight  of  the 
heathen,  and  make  his  blessed  gospel  mighty  to  the 
tearing  down  of  strongholds ;  and  knowing  also  that 
this  glorious  gospel  is  preached  to  multitudes  of  blind 
idolaters,  and  the  Bible  placed  in  their  hands,  in  which 
every  man  can  read  in  his  own  tongue  the  wonderful 
works  of  God,  we  are  constrained  to  rejoice,  yea,  and 
we  will  rejoice.  This  precious  book — the  Bible — which 
contains  the  religion  of  Protestants,  is  destined  to  sup- 
plant the  Hindu  Shasters,  the  Quran  of  the  false  pro- 

16* 


186  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


phet,  the  wicked  decrees  and  pretensions  of  the  Man 
of  Sin,  and  every  system  of  iniquity,  in  every  pagan 
land.  Though  men  be  bound,  as  in  chains,  by  caste, 
and  prejudice,  and  superstition,  and  sin,  yet  the 
word  of  God  is  not  bound.  By  its  free  distribution  it 
is  cast  as  bread,  or  as  rice,  upon  the  waters,  and  it 
will  be  found  after  many  days ;  it  will  not  return  unto 
the  Lord  void,  but  shall  accomplish  that  which  he 
pleases,  and  prosper  in  the  thing  whereunto  he  sent  it. 
The  precious  seed,  so  abundantly  sown  by  the  mis- 
sionaries in  Hindustan,  may  for  a  time  appear  to  be 
lost  amid  the  rubbish  and  superstition  in  which  it 
falls ;  and  much  of  it  may  actually  be  choked  by  the 
thorns  of  prejudice  over  which  it  must  ascend;  yet 
doubtless  some  of  it  will  fall  in  good  ground — in  honest 
hearts,  prepared  by  divine  grace  for  its  reception,  and 
bring  forth  much  fruit  to  the  glory  of  God. 

Nor  should  we  be  discouraged  in  this  great  under- 
taking on  account  of  the  slow  progress  of  the  work  at 
first,  or  the  difficulties  by  which  it  is  beset.  In  the 
numerous  worthy  enterprises  that  are  going  on  in  the 
present  day,  difficulties  are  set  at  naught,  and  by  dint 
of  effort  fully  overcome  in  order  to  accomplish  some 
grand  object,  beneficial  to  society  and  remunerative  in 
its  results.  Hence,  in  the  construction  of  a  railroad, 
mountains  of  solid  rock  are  either  bored  through  or 
levelled  down,  and  valleys  filled  up,  and  immense  out- 
lay incurred  for  years  before  any  thing  is  realized 
from  the  undertaking.  So  also,  in  order  to  convey 
intelligence  from  one  end  of  the  land  to  the  other,  and 
for  thousands  of  miles,  with  the  speed  of  lightning,  the 
speaking  wires  are  drawn  across  mighty  rivers,  over 


WORLDLY   ENTERPRISE.  187 


rugged  mountains,  and  through  dense  forests,  at  a  vast 
expense,  and  all  in  view  of  prospective  returns.  Back- 
woodsmen, too,  in  the  United  States,  are  willing  to 
endure  the  toil  of  years,  and  to  expend  much  labour, 
and  even  the  vigour  of  their  lives,  in  clearing  the  forest, 
in  hewing,  and  chopping,  and  rolling,  and  burning, 
and  fencing,  and  grubbing,  and  ploughing,  and  sowing, 
and  all  in  hopes  of  a,  future  harvest.  They  are  quite 
certain,  too,  that  after  all  their  care  and  labour,  much 
of  the  seed  at  first  sown  will  be  lost  amid  the  under- 
growth; that,  in  their  day,  they  must  be  content  to 
see  the  scathed  and  branchless  trunks  standing  as 
monuments  of  the  grandeur  of  the  primeval  forest,  and 
that  it  must  remain  for  their  children,  or  their  grand- 
children, to  enjoy  the  fruits  of  a  full  harvest  from  land 
perfectly  cleared,  and  fenced,  and  cultivated.  Yet  are 
they  not,  in  view  of  all  these  difficulties  and  disad- 
vantages, deterred  from  commencing  new  settlements. 
Enterprising  American  citizens  are  annually  making 
rapid  advances  to  the  "far  west,"  and  even  climbing 
the  Rocky  Mountains,  far  beyond  the  red  man's  hut, 
to  find  a  residence — a  home  on  the  shores  of  the  North 
Pacific.  Such  men  are  endued  with  the  wisdom  of  this 
world ;  and  why  should  Christians  not  imitate  them  in 
efforts  to  advance  a  far  nobler  cause  ?  Why  not  apply 
the  same  reasoning  and  make  the  same  deductions  in 
the  case  of  those  who  go  out  as  pioneers  of  the  gospel 
— who  go  to  heathen  nations  to  prepare  the  way  of  the 
people — to  gather  out  the  stones — to  cast  up  a  high- 
way for  the  chariot  of  the  everlasting  gospel — "  to 
root  out,  to  pull  down,  and  to  destroy — to  throw  down, 
and  to  build,  and  to  plant."     And  why  expect  im- 


188  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


mediate  success  in  the  one  case  more  than  in  the  other, 
especially  when  we  know  that  it  is  the  will  of  the  Lord 
to  carry  on  his  work  by  human  instrumentality,  and 
to  bless  it  in  proportion  to  the  faithful  and  persevering 
efforts  of  his  people  ? 

It  ought  to  be  remembered  also,  that  the  analogy 
between  backwoodsmen  and  foreign  missionaries  does 
not  hold  good  in  all  respects.     The  difficulties  to  be 
overcome  in  one  case  are  physical,  in  the  other  moral. 
Numbers  also  are  against  us.     Thousands  and  thou- 
sands are  yearly  pressing  into  the  heart  of  the  western 
wilderness,  while  but  a  few  hands  are  sent  to  cultivate 
the  jungles  of  heathenism ;  and  their  influence  is,  com- 
paratively, but  little  felt  among  the  hundreds  of  mil- 
lions with  whom  they  mingle.     The  unresisting  forest 
soon  gives  way  before  the  axe  of  the  sturdy  farmer, 
and  he  sows  in  a  rich  alluvial  soil  which  has  not  been 
overrun  with  brambles,  and  which,  almost  from  the  be- 
ginning, amply  rewards  his  toil ;  but  the  ground  which 
the  missionary  cultivates  is  pre-occupied.     The  minds 
of  the  heathen,  and  of  the  Mohammedans  in  Hindustan, 
are  filled  with  notions  about  religion,  which,  however 
absurd  and  erroneous,  are  those  which,  from  infancy, 
have  been  received  from  their  ancestors,  as  given  by 
God,  and  as  had  in  reverence  from  time  immemorial. 
These  notions,  too,  though  in  our  estimation  evidently 
opposed  to  common  sense,  they  hold  with  a  pertinacity 
worthy  of  the  best  of  causes,  and  defend  with  minds, 
which  however  illogical,  are  naturally  acute  and  meta- 
physical. 

In  short,  the  missionaries  in  India  have  to  "wrestle 
not  only  against  flesh  and  blood,  but  against  princi- 


UNITED   PRAYER   NECESSARY.  189 


palities  and  powers,  against  the  rulers  of  the  darkness 
of  this  world,  and  against  spiritual  wickedness  in  high 
places."  But,  in  the  use  of  the  weapons  of  divine  ap- 
pointment, they  have  nothing  to  fear,  hut  every  ground 
of  hope  and  encouragement.  Clad  in  the  armour  of 
heaven,  they  will  he  invincible,  and  in  every  time  of 
difficulty  and  danger  prayer  will  bring  to  their  assist- 
ance "  an  arm  that  is  full  of  power."  Only  let  the 
church — the  ivhole  church — hold  up  her  hands  in 
prayer,  sustain  her  servants  in  the  field,  and  greatly 
increase  their  number,  and  soon  the  shout  of  a  glorious 
victory  will  reverberate  around  the  continents  and 
islands  of  a  once  degraded,  but  then  a  holy  and  a 
happy  people ;  soon  the  kingdoms  of  this  world  will 
become  the  kingdoms  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and 
he  shall  reign  for  ever  and  ever. 


190  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

Duties  and  responsibilities  of  Christians  to  the"  heathen — Ail 
Hindustan  open  to  the  gospel — A  loud  call  of  Providence  in 
behalf  of  her  perishing  millions — No  good  reason  for  delay — 
The  church  now  called  upon  to  display  her  militant  and  aggres- 
sive character — A  good  beginning  made — Advantages  not  to  be 
lost  "without  increased  guilt — Christian  neglect  exposed — The 
physical,  mental,  and  moral  degradation  of  the  Hindus  an  argu- 
ment in  their  behalf — Their  destiny  as  heathen — Their  blood 
laid  to  the  account  of  an  unfaithful  church — The  gospel  a 
remedy  for  their  case — The  last  command  binding  on  all,  yet 
obeyed  by  few — No  lack  of  enterprise  in  worldly  affairs — Duty 
to  the  heathen  misunderstood — Not  to  be  converted  by  miracles, 
but  by  means  of  divine  appointment — Apostolic  example  worthy 
of  imitation — Our  obligations  and  advantages  greater  than  those 
of  the  primitive  Christians — Sketch  of  Paul's  missionary  labours 
— Entire  consecration  required  of  all — The  missionary  spirit 
essentially  the  spirit  of  the  gospel — The  Apostle  John's  views 
of  the  case — Selfishness  incompatible  with  Christianity — Neglect 
of  the  heathen  inconsistent  with  humanity,  justice,  honesty, 
faithfulness,  and  gratitude — Love  to  Christ  surmounts  diffi- 
culties— Signs  of  promise — Success  fully  proportioned  to  efforts 
made — The  work  in  its  infancy — Christians  only  awaking  to 
a  sense  of  duty — Sketch  of  what  has  been  accomplished — Re- 
sults incalculable — Closing  address  to  youth,  to  students  of 
theology,  and  to  the  church  at  large. 

Having  now  imparted  to  our  Christian  friends  a 
very  brief  account  of  the  present  state  of  the  missions 
in  Northern  Hindustan,  we  cannot  bring  this  work 
to  a  close  without  attempting  to  make  an  improve- 
ment of  the  important   facts   that   have   been   pre- 


CALL   OF    PROVIDENCE.  191 


sented.  We  would,  therefore,  in  this  chapter  draw 
a  few  inferences  from  the  subject,  with  a  design  of 
pointing  out  the  duties  and  responsibilities  devolving 
on  Christians  in  regard  to  the  heathen  of  India,  and 
of  the  world  at  large;  and  to  these  we  would  now 
ask  the  attention  and  prayerful  consideration  of  our 
readers. 

1.  It  is  a  fact  no  less  remarkable  than  it  is  certain, 
that  God,  in  his  providence,  and  in  the  most  myste- 
rious and  unexpected  manner,  has  opened  up  all  Hin- 
dustan, one  of  the  most  important  portions  of  the 
heathen  world,  with  a  population  of  about  one  hundred 
and  fifty  millions  of  souls,  as  a  field  of  missionary 
operations  to  the  church  of  Christ ;  and  that  under  the 
protection  of  British  law,  and  with  no  hindrances  but 
such  as  may  be  expected  from  a  people  long  enslaved 
by  bigotry  and  idolatry,  missionaries  may  now  enter 
in  and  possess  the  land — may  preach  and  teach,  no 
man  forbidding  them,  and  may  hope  finally,  through 
the  gracious  assistance  of  Him  who  has  commanded 
them  to  go  and  disciple  all  nations,  not  only  to  over- 
throw the  hoary  and  impure  systems  which  error  and 
superstition  have  reared,  but  in  their  room  to  establish 
the  principles  and  practices  of  a  pure  and  divine  re- 
ligion. 

The  language  of  this  providence  is  too  plain,  we 
think,  to  be  misunderstood  by  any  who  are  anxious  to 
know  their  duty  in  relation  to  these  millions  of  per- 
ishing idolaters,  or  who  would  recognise  the  awful 
responsibilities  which  this  fact  necessarily  imposes  on 
all  who  love  the  Saviour.  The  Macedonian  cry  which 
came  to  the  ears  of  Paul,  and  which  determined  him 


192  MISSIONS    IN   HINDUSTAN. 


to  leave  his  work  in  Asia  Minor  and  pass  over  to 
Greece,  was  not  more  plain  and  importunate  than  is 
the  language  of  such  a  remarkable  providence  as  this 
to  all  Christendom,  and  especially  to  all  who,  like  the 
men  of  Issachar,  "  have  understanding  of  the  times  to 
know  what  Israel  ought  to  do." 

If  the  church  of  Christ  were  only  awake,  as  she 
ought  to  be,  to  a  sense  of  her  obligations  to  her  exalted 
Head  and  the  undying  souls  of  the  heathen,  for  whom 
she  has  been  put  in  trust  with  the  gospel,  she  would 
be  constantly  looking  out  for  an  opportunity  such  as 
this  for  carrying  out  her  high  commission,  and  for 
planting  her  standard  in  the  midst  of  the  enemy's 
camp ;  and  no  sooner  would  an  opening  appear  in  the 
citadel  of  heathendom,  than  ten  thousand  of  her 
bravest  sons,  supported  by  the  funds  and  the  prayers 
of  all,  would  rush  forward  with  the  sword  of  the  Spirit 
in  their  hands,  to  assert  the  rights  of  the  King  of 
kings,  and  to  demand  the  liberties  of  those  whom 
Satan  has  made  captive  at  his  will,  and  so  long  en- 
slaved in  the  service  of  sin.  Such  heroic  conduct 
would  not  only  prove  the  loyalty  of  the  citizens  of 
Zion  to  their  King,  but  it  would  evince  the  love  they 
had  for  the  dearest  rights  and  liberties  of  their  fellow- 
men.  Oh,  why  is  it  that  the  world,  by  its  bravery, 
by  its  boasted  philanthropy,  and  its  personal  and 
pecuniary  sacrifices  in  maintaining  its  civil  rights,  and 
in  vindicating  its  honour,  should  cast  into  the  shade 
the  feeble  attempts  made  by  modern  Christianity  to 
carry  the  gospel  of  peace  into  the  regions  of  crime  and 
horrid  cruelty  ?  Contemplate  the  millions,  almost  be- 
yond calculation,  that  are  expended  annually  from  the 


NO  EXCUSE  FOR  DELAY.  193 


public  treasuries  of  Christian  nations  in  the  support 
of  military  establishments,  while  the  sum  is  easily 
counted — not  amounting  to  more  from  all  calling  them- 
selves  Christians  than  a  mere  pittance,  the  loss  of 
which  they  have  never  felt — which  is  devoted  by  Chris- 
tian benevolence  to  the  spread  of  the  glorious  gospel ! 

During  the  ages  of  religious  persecution  that  have 
passed  over  the  church,  when,  for  conscience'  sake, 
men's  souls  and  principles  were  severely  tried;  and 
when  at  times  the  flames  rose  so  high  that  she  seemed 
to  be  struggling  for  an  existence,  there  was  some  ex- 
cuse for  her  neglect  of  the  heathen  world — though  it 
is  possible  that  these  very  persecutions  were  permitted 
as  a  punishment  for  that  neglect;  yet  now,  in  the 
United  States  at  least,  where  there  is  religious  liberty, 
peace  and  plenty  to  the  utmost  extent  of  all  reasonable 
desires,  there  cannot  be  the  shadow  of  an  excuse  for 
such  neglect.  The  sin  of  such  neglect,  too,  must  be 
greatly  increased  when  we  consider  that  the  finger  of 
Providence  points  so  directly  to  the  openings  that  are 
constantly  being  made  for  her  enlargement  in  those 
parts  of  the  world  that  had  formerly  been  closed 
against  her  efforts. 

It  is  not  long  since  the  most  evangelical  churches 
in  Christendom  seemed  to  think  that  they  had  per- 
formed their  part  pretty  fully  if  they  "  held  fast  the 
form  of  sound  words,"  and  kept  themselves  pure  from 
the  spreading  contagion  of  heresy — important  duties 
to  be  sure,  because  clearly  enjoined  in  the  Bible — but 
the  time  is  now  past  when  the  woman,  the  church,  is  to 
be  secreted  in  the  wilderness.  If  we  mistake  not,  the 
twelve  hundred  and  sixty  years,  during  which  she  was 

17 


194  MISSIONS    IN    HINDUSTAN. 


to  remain  in  a  place  of  comparative  secrecy,  prepared 
for  her  of  God,  have  been  fulfilled  in  1848,  when  the 
Pope  was  driven  from  his  seat  at  Rome ;  and  we  think 
she  is  now  especially  called  upon  to  exhibit  a  different 
aspect,  and  to  assume  a  different  position,  in  regard  to 
her  popish  and  pagan  enemies.  Her  character  is 
henceforth  to  be  more  militant  and  aggressive.  She 
in  now  to  carry  her  arms  and  ammunition  into  the  very 
heart  of  the  enemy's  country,  and  to  have  no  cessation 
of  war  until  "  the  kingdoms  of  this  world  shall  become 
the  kingdoms  of  our  Lord  and  of  his  Christ,"  and 
until  all  her  implicable  enemies  be  destroyed  "  by 
the  spirit  of  his  mouth,"  or  their  hostility  shall  melt 
away  "before  the  brightness  of  his  coming^" 

That  India,  which  is  the  key  to  all  Asia,  has  been 
placed  under  the  enlightened  government  of  Britain — 
that  the  once  powerful  sovereigns  and  emperors,  who 
swayed  their  sceptres  over  its  immense  population, 
have  been  subdued  by  a  handful  of  foreigners  in  a  suc- 
cession of  victories  which  have  not  only  surprised  the 
world  at  large,  but  even  the  conquerors  themselves — 
and  that  the  most  ancient  and  formidable  system  of 
idolatry  which  has  ever  been  invented  "  by  men  of  cor- 
rupt minds,"  has  been  laid  open  to  the  inspection  of  the 
Christian  world,  and  to  a  complete  exposure  by  coming 
in  contact  with  scriptural  and  scientific  truth,  are  all 
events  so  full  of  meaning  that  it  is  not  difficult  to  dis- 
cover the  traces  of  an  invisible  hand  preparing  the 
way  of  the  Lord  among  the  nations.  Indeed,  the  very 
heathen  themselves  are  ready  to  ascribe  these  strange 
events  to  the  same  cause,  and  to  look  upon  them  as 
precursors  of  the  complete  overthrow  of  Hinduism ! 


A   GOOD    BEGINNING   MADE.  195 


Already  has  the  gospel  been  planted  at  distant 
points  of  this  empire  by  Christian  missionaries,  and 
the  nuclei  of  Christian  churches  have  been  com- 
menced. The  heathen  are  peaceably  disposed,  and 
willing  to  hear  the  claims  of  Christianity.  Many  of 
them  look  to  Christian  missionaries  for  instruction  in 
English  literature ;  and  press  into  our  schools  at  the 
risk  sometimes  of  incurring  the  frowns  of  their  friends, 
from  a  desire  to  obtain  the  education  we  have  it  in  our 
power  to  impart.  Daily  their  miserable  condition  as 
idolaters  is  becoming  more  apparent  to  themselves, 
and  many  of  them  inwardly  sigh  over  the  degradation 
to  which  a  blind  superstition  has  reduced  them.  Their 
condition  calls  loudly  for  help,  and  the  providence  of 
God,  as  well  as  the  command  of  Christ,  enjoins  upon 
Christians  of  every  name  immediate  action  in  their  be- 
half. Why  then  should  the  eyes  of  the  Christian 
world  any  longer  remain  closed  to  the  important  duty 
so  kindly  imposed,  and  which  has  so  direct  a  bearing 
on  the  eternal  destinies  of  one-seventh  of  the  human 
race  ?  Why  any  longer  delay  in  sending  the  gospel 
of  our  salvation  to  a  people  so  wondrously  brought 
into  a  civil  relation  with  Christian  nations,  and  whose 
present  position  is  likely  to  render  efforts  for  their 
evangelization  so  eminently  successful  ?  The  call  thus 
made,  moreover,  becomes  increasingly  urgent  from  the 
consideration  that  every  moment  that  is  lost  will  ren- 
der the  work  to  be  accomplished  still  more  difficult ; 
and  that  days  of  delay  in  undertaking  it  may  add 
years  to  the  realization  of  our  hopes.  The  light  of 
science,  which  must  now  necessarily  spread  through 
British  India,  will  gradually  remove  the  gross  dark- 


196  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


ness  and  superstition  which  has  so  long  rested  upon 
the  people.  Losing  their  attachment  to  a  system 
•which  true  science  exposes  to  universal  condemnation, 
the  puhlic  mind,  unless  enlightened  by  the  gospel, 
must  become  infidel.  In  fact,  this  has  already  been 
the  result,  to  a  considerable  extent,  in  places  where 
government  education  without  the  Bible,  has  gone 
faster  than  the  Christian  church  has  seen  fit  to  follow 
with  the  light  of  sacred  truth. 

For  this  neglect,  producing,  as  it  must  do,  an  im- 
mense hindrance  to  the  gospel  in  future,  there  will  be 
an  awful  reckoning  at  last.  Great  guilt  must  rest 
somewhere,  and  much  probably  everywhere.  For  this 
the  people  of  God  should  be  humble,  and  pardon 
should  be  sought  where  only  it  is  to  be  found,  through 
the  blood  of  Christ.  But  what  is  to  be  done  now,  and 
for  the  future  ?  Shall  we  continue  in  such  a  sinful 
course  of  neglect  and  selfishness  that  grace  may 
abound?  God  forbid  that  such  should  be  the  case. 
And  yet  we  greatly  fear  there  are  many  who  call 
themselves  Christians,  who  have  very  little  idea  of 
making  the  sacrifices  which  the  occasion  requires,  or 
even  of  going  beyond  the  scale  of  liberality  which 
penuriousness  itself  has  established,  and  which  hardly 
affects  the  purse,  much  less  the  comforts,  the  luxuries, 
and  the  self-indulgences  of  the  professed  followers  of 
Him,  "  who  for  our  sakes  became  poor."  In  exposing 
such  conduct  on  the  part  of  professing  Christians,  we 
would  employ  the  language  of  a  powerful  writer  on 
this  subject.*     He  says,  "  If  we  persist  in  neglecting 

*  "  Great  Commission,"  by  Dr.  Harris.  A  work  which  should 
be  in  the  hands  of  every  Christian. 


STANDARD    OP    DUTY.  197 


the  heathen,  let  us  plainly  declare  the  reason.  But 
before  we  finally  dismiss  them  to  destruction,  let  us, 
by  a  public  manifesto,  or  otherwise,  exculpate  Chris- 
tianity, and  blame  the  only  guilty  cause,  by  telling 
them,  'Your  conversion  to  the  Christian  faith  is  an 
object  of  the  highest  importance.  To  effect  it  would 
greatly  augment  our  heavenly  happiness,  secure  in- 
finite blessings  to  you,  and  bring  to  God  everlasting 
glory.  As  far  as  our  instrumentality  is  necessary,  the 
means  are  all  in  our  possession.  But  we  cannot  fur- 
nish them  without  abridging  our  self-indulgence ;  and, 
as  this  requires  more  love  for  your  souls,  and  more 
regard  for  the  authority  of  Christ  than  we  possess,  we 
see  no  alternative  but  that  of  leaving  you  to  perish.' 
Now,  startling  as  such  language  may  seem,  by  what 
other  terms  can  we  excuse  ourselves  from  entire  de- 
votedness  to  their  salvation?"  We  hope  there  is  no 
real  Christian  who,  with  these  facts  before  him,  and 
in  view  of  rendering  up  an  account  of  his  stewardship 
at  last,  will  deliberately  adopt  such  an  alternative. 
Would  that  all  the  sincere  followers  of  Christ  felt  more 
deeply  that  nothing  less  than  entire  devotedness  to  the 
world's  salvation  is  the  standard  of  their  duty;  and 
that  they  would  fully  and  heartily  adopt  the  motto 
of  primitive  Christianity,  "  None  of  us  liveth  to 
himself."  Then  would  India,  and  every  other  field 
open  to  the  gospel,  soon  be  filled  up  with  devoted  mis- 
sionaries, sustained  by  the  willing  contributions  and 
the  fervent  prayers  of  the  tvhole  church. 

2.  The  mental  and  moral  degradation  of  the  Hin- 
dus, which  we  have  attempted  to  describe,  but  which 
it  would  be  not  only  impossible,  but  improper  fully  to 

17* 


198  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


disclose,  calls  loudly  upon  the  Christian  world  to  put 
them  in  possession  of  a  pure  gospel.  It  is  unnecessary 
to  harrow  the  feelings  by  referring  again  to  the  speci- 
mens of  Hindu  cruelty  that  have  been  witnessed,  and 
that  are  not  only  authorized  but  enjoined  in  the 
Shasters :  such  as  the  burning  of  the  living  mother  on 
the  funeral  pile  with  her  deceased  husband,  by  the 
hand  of  her  first-born  son,  and  as  one  of  the  most 
meritorious  of  human  acts  ;  the  ghat  murders  of  the 
aged  and  the  dying,  by  suffocation  with  the  waters  of 
the  Ganges,  as  a  lustration  to  qualify  for  heaven  ;  the 
swinging  of  candidates  for  religious  merit,  by  fasten- 
ing iron  hooks  in  the  flesh  of  the  backs  of  the  deluded 
victims ;  the  offerings  of  the  first-born  infants  to  the 
goddess  Gunga — "  the  fruit  of  the  body  for  the  sin 
of  the  soul;"  the  more  than  brutal  degradation  of 
many  sects  of  faqirs  in  the  attempt  to  subdue  the  hu- 
man feelings  and  passions,  and  to  obtain  absorption 
into  the  deity  himself;  the  writhing  agonies  of  men 
crushed  to  pieces  beneath  the  car  of  Jagatnath ;  the 
weary  and  exhausting  pilgrimages  made  by  myriads  to 
distant  shrines,  and  from  which  multitudes  never  re- 
turn ;  the  reduction  of  a  large  proportion  of  the  people 
to  the  most  menial  services,  from  which  they  can 
never  hope  to  raise  themselves,  until  the  chains  of 
caste,  which  for  ever  bind  men  to  occupy  the  position 
in  which  they  were  born,  be  snapped  asunder ;  the 
physical  and  mental  degradation  of  the  female  sex ; 
these,  and  much  more  that  might  be  named,  so  charac- 
teristic of  this  dark  portion  of  the  earth,  so  long  the 
habitation  of  cruelty,  are  surely  calculated  to   call 


OLDEST  SYSTEM  OF  IDOLATRY.        199 


forth  the  sympathies  and  efforts  of  every  philanthropist 
for  their  speedy  removal. 

But  the  degradation  of  the  heathen  in  India  is  not 
only  physical  and  mental,  it  is  also  moral.  The  loath- 
some disease  of  sin,  in  all  its  naked  deformity  and 
unblushing  effrontery,  shows  itself  most  distinctly  in 
the  whole  putrid  mass  of  heathen  society ;  so  that,  ex- 
amine it  where  you  please,  you  must  be  convinced  that 
there  is  no  moral  soundness  in  it.  Without  shame, 
and  apparently  without  remorse,  all  the  black  cata- 
logue of  crimes  mentioned  in  the  first  and  third  chap- 
ters of  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans,  are  constantly  com- 
mitted by  the  Hindus.  In  all  the  works  of  the  flesh, 
adultery,  fornication,  uncleanness,  lasciviousness,  idola- 
try, witchcraft,  hatred,  variance,  emulations,  wrath, 
strife,  seditions,  heresies,  envyings,  murders,  drunken- 
ness, revelings,  and  such  like,  they  seem  to  take 
exquisite  pleasure.  To  speak  of  the  gross  abomina- 
tions of  their  idol  worship,  and  of  the  things  that  are 
done  of  them  in  secret,  during  their  midnight  orgies, 
would  be  a  shame  and  a  disgrace.  Their  moral  dis- 
ease, like  all  others  of  a  deadly  nature,  continues,  the 
longer  it  exists,  to  grow  worse  and  worse ;  and  as 
Hinduism  is  probably  the  oldest  system  of  idolatry  in 
the  world,  the  present  degree  of  moral  obliquity  and 
pollution  at  which  its  adherents  have  arrived,  may  be 
better  imagined  than  described.  The  road  to  ruin  is 
a  downhill  way,  and  when  men  forsake  the  true 
God,  and  his  law,  and  cast  the  reins  of  reason  on  the 
neck  of  their  depraved  passions,  their  progress  in 
iniquity   is   fearfully   rapid.     As    some   mighty   orb, 


200  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


loosed  from  its  centre,  flies  off  through  the  immensity 
of  space  with  increased  and  constantly  increasing 
velocity,  so  those  who  have  revolted  from  God  con- 
tinue to  wax  worse  and  worse,  from  generation  to  gene- 
ration, until  their  guilt  accumulates  and  rises  like 
mountains  to  heaven,  to  call  down  the  divine  ven- 
geance, and  to  close  the  door  of  mercy. 

If  we  contemplate  the  moral  character  of  the  Hin- 
dus, with  the  Bible  in  our  hands,  we  cannot  be  at  a 
loss  to  ascertain  their  awful  destiny,  unless  the  gospel 
be  sent  to  them.  We  have  often  felt  surprised  to  find 
men,  who  profess  to  believe  the  Scriptures,  expressing 
a  hope  of  the  salvation  of  many  of  the  heathen,  and 
advancing  the  opinion  that,  even  ignorant  as  they  are, 
there  may  be  some  virtuous  and  pious,  and  even  inno- 
cent men  among  them.  Such  hopes  and  opinions  are 
founded  neither  on  the  Scriptures  nor  on  facts.  On 
the  other  hand,  they  are  expressly  contradicted  by 
both.  The  Scriptures  plainly  declare  that  "  all  have 
sinned  and  come  short  of  the  glory  of  God;"  that 
"the  wages  of  sin  is  death" — death  eternal ;  and  that 
"there  is  none  righteous,  no  not  one."  The  apostle 
Paul  has  proved  to  a  demonstration  that  "  Jews  and 
gentiles  are  all  under  sin,"  so  that  "  every  mouth  might 
be  stopped,  and  all  the  world  become  guilty  before 
God."  It  is  also  written,  "  Cursed  is  every  one  that 
continueth  not  in  all  things  written  in  the  book  of  the 
law  to  do  them;"  and  that  "they  who  sin  without 
law,  shall  perish  without  law."  The  same  apostle 
also,  in  writing  to  those  who  had  been  brought  out  of 
heathen  darkness  to  the  light  of  the  gospel,  speaks 


FATE  OF  THE  UNCONVERTED  HEATHEN.    201 


of  their  former  condition  as  one  in  which  they  were 
"  dead  in  trespasses  and  sins ;"  in  which  they  "  walked 
according  to  the  course  of  this  world,"  according  to 
"  the  spirit  that  now  worketh  in  the  children  of  diso- 
bedience," in  which  they  "fulfilled  the  desires  of  the 
flesh  and  of  the  mind,  and  were  by  nature  the  children 
of  wrath,  even  as  others,"  in  which  they  were  "with- 
out God,  and  without  hope  in  the  world ;"  and  he 
describes  those  who  still  remain  in  heathenism,  as 
"  walking  in  the  vanity  of  their  minds,  having  the  un- 
derstanding darkened,  being  alienated  from  the  life  of 
God,  through  the  ignorance  that  is  in  them,  because 
of  the  blindness  of  their  hearts  ;  who  being  past  feel- 
ing, have  given  themselves  over  unto  lasciviousness,  to 
work  all  uncleanness  with  greediness ;"  and  then  he 
adds,  that  it  is  "  the  judgment  of  God,  that  they  which 
commit  such  things  are  worthy  of  death  ;"  that  they 
"shall  not  inherit  the  kingdom  of  God,"  but  that 
"idolaters,  and  all  liars,  shall  have  their  part  in  the 
lake  which  burneth  with  fire  and  brimstone." 

The  conduct  of  Paul  also,  in  his  unwearied  efforts  to 
make  known  the  gospel  to  the  heathen  nations,  is  an 
impressive  comment  on  these  sentiments.  It  shows 
us  what  he  was  willing  to  undertake  and  to  endure,  if 
by  any  means,  or  by  all  means,  he  might  save  some 
of  them.  The  sight  which  he  had  of  their  moral  pollu- 
tion, and  of  the  end  which  awaited  them  in  a  world 
of  woe,  disposed  him  to  meet  persecutions  and  dangers, 
and  even  death  itself,  in  any  form,  rather  than  leave 
them  unwarned  of  their  danger,  and  uninformed  of 
the  great  salvation  which  the    gospel   reveals.     lie 


f 

i 


202  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


know  that  without  faith  it  is  impossible  to  please  God, 
or  to  become  partakers  of  this  salvation ;  and  that 
faith  cometh  by  hearing  the  gospel,  as  it  is  impossible 
to  believe  on  Him  of  whom  they  have  not  heard.  He 
knew  that  prayer  was  necessary  to  salvation  ;  but  that 
it  was  in  vain  to  expect  sinners  to  call  on  him  of  whom 
they  had  no  knowledge.  He  knew  that,  in  order  to 
the  exercise  of  faith  and  prayer,  the  heathen  must  be 
made  acquainted  with  the  gospel,  and  that  for  this 
purpose  missionaries  must  be  sent  to  them.  He  knew 
that  there  is  no  other  mediator  between  God  and  men, 
and  no  other  name  by  which  any  can  be  saved,  but 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  He  knew  that  the  heathen, 
impenitent,  unhumbled,  unsanctified,  could  never  enter 
within  the  gates  of  the  New  Jerusalem,  and  that  im- 
mense myriads  of  our  race,  with  souls  that  can  never 
die,  in  one  continued  swelling  stream,  were  rapidly 
passing  onward  and  downward  to  the  pit  of  endless 
misery  and  despair.  Hence  the  zeal  and  the  efforts 
of  this  great  missionary  to  the  gentiles,  "if  by  any 
means  he  might  save  some  of  them." 

Thus  Scripture,  reason,  and  an  intimate  acquaintance 
with  the  facts  of  the  case,  all  combine  in  proving  the 
awfully  depraved  condition  of  the  heathen,  as  well  as 
the  darkness  of  their  future  prospects.  Alas !  that 
the  Christian  world  should  be  so  little  impressed  with 
a  subject  of  such  infinite  importance.  Who  can  con- 
template it  without  horror,  and  a  deep  sense  of  re- 
sponsibility ? 

If  there  are  any  at  ease  in  Zion,  who  care  for  none 
of  these  things  ;  if  there  are  any  enjoying  the  benefits 


ENTIRE  CONSECRATION  REQUIRED.      203 


of  the  gospel,  but  unwilling  to  share  its  blessings  with 
those  ready  to  perish  ;  if  there  are  any  doing  nothing 
to  enlighten  and  save  them,  let  such  remember  that  the 
blood  of  the  heathen  will  be  required  at  their  hands. 
And  that  there  are  many,  very  many  such  heartless 
professors  of  religion  in  all  Christian  churches  at  the 
present  day,  the  apathy  that  is  manifested  in  the  mis- 
sionary cause  is  but  too  lamentable  a  proof.  How  is 
it  possible,  with  all  the  light  that  has  of  late  been 
thrown  on  this  subject,  that  men,  who,  for  the  spread 
of  the  gospel,  the  salvation  of  the  heathen,  and  the 
glory  of  Christ,  will  not  part  even  with  a  tithe  of  their 
substance,  which  in  truth  all  belongs  to  God,  can  pro- 
perly be  regarded  as  faithful  stewards,  as  duly  appre- 
ciating the  value  of  the  gospel  which  they  possess,  or 
as  having  any  true  love  to  the  souls  of  their  fellow 
mortals  perishing  in  pagan  lands  ?  Can  those  pos- 
sess much  of  the  Spirit  of  Christ  who  do  not  seem  to 
feel  for  the  present  miseries,  and  the  future  untold 
agonies  of  the  heathen  ?  That  sinners  might  not 
perish  but  have  eternal  life,  the  love  of  God  provided 
a  Saviour,  and  sent  him  on  a  mission  of  mercy  to  our 
ruined  world.  That  a  ransom  might  be  paid  to  satisfy 
divine  justice  on  our  behalf,  the  Son  of  God  laid  down 
his  life  on  the  cross  of  Calvary.  That  the  balm  of 
Gilead  might  be  applied  by  the  great  Physician,  for 
the  healing  of  the  nations,  the  exalted  Head  of  the 
church  pours  out  his  Spirit,  and  commands  his  fol- 
lowers to  go  and  offer  the  remedy  to  every  creature. 
In  Christ  there  is  a  righteousness  which  will  justify 
the  most  ungodly  sinner  that  will  accept  of  it.     In 


204  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


him  there  is  blood  that  can  cleanse  the  most  vile  and 
polluted.  And  shall  we  dare  to  keep  back  this  sove- 
reign remedy,  this  gospel  panacea,  from  the  heathen 
placed  within  our  reach,  when  we  know  that  without  it 
they  must  perish  eternally?  When,  on  account  of 
their  rebellion,  fiery  flying  serpents  were  sent  among 
the  Israelites,  by  the  sting  of  which  multitudes  were 
perishing  in  all  the  agonies  of  torture,  do  you  suppose 
that  Moses  would  have  been  considered  faithful  in  all 
his  house,  as  a  servant,  had  he  not,  at  the  command 
of  God,  raised  up  in  the  wilderness  the  brazen  ser- 
pent, so  that  attain  the  camp  might  look  to  it  and 
live?  This  was  a  striking  type  of  Christ.  In  like 
manner  the  Son  of  Man  must  be  lifted  up,  as  the 
ordinance  of  God,  for  the  healing  of  the  dying  nations, 
"that  they  may  not  perish  but  have  everlasting  life." 
This  solemn  duty  devolves  upon  the  church ;  and  to 
discharge  it  faithfully,  and  to  be  a  co-worker  with 
Christ,  in  reclaiming  the  heathen  that  have  been 
given  to  him  for  his  inheritance,  is,  certainly,  the 
greatest  honour  and  privilege  that  can  be  conferred 
upon  her.  Is  it  possible  that  there  can  be  any  true 
Christian  who  would  not  desire  to  have  a  share  in  so 
glorious  an  enterprise  ?  Here  is  a  field  in  which  the 
hearts  and  hands  and  sympathizing  benevolence  of 
all  may  find  something  to  do  for  Christ.  Here  is  a 
cause  in  which  the  rich  and  the  poor  may  spend 
their  millions  and  their  mites  to  the  best  advan- 
tage ;  a  cause  in  which  all  can  unite  their  suppli- 
cations to  the  Hearer  of  prayer,  who  can  render 
our  feeble  efforts  effectual  in  the  advancement  of 
his  kingdom. 


THE    WORLD    PREFERRED    TO    CHRIST.  205 


3.  The  express  command  of  the  Saviour  to  "go 
into  all  the  world  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every 
creature" — to  "disciple  all  nations,"  "beginning  at 
Jerusalem,"  imposes  a  most  important  and  imperative 
duty  on  the  church,  which  she  may  not  neglect,  so 
lonsr  as  a  single  sinner  on  earth  remains  unreconciled 
to  God.  How  imperfectly  this  command  has  been 
obeyed  during  the  last  eighteen  hundred  years,  the 
present  state  of  the  world,  with  its  six  or  eight  hun- 
dred millions  of  heathen,  will  fully  testify.  And  yet 
professing  Christians  have  not  been  idle.  Into  what 
part  of  the  earth  or  of  the  ocean  has  not  the  love  of 
gain  or  of  scientific  research  led  them  ?  How  many 
exploring  expeditions  have  gone  forth  to  heathen 
lands,  that  they  might  contribute  something  to  the 
stores  of  scientific  knowledge  already  possessed !  Is 
there  any  place  too  distant,  any  clime  too  insalubrious, 
any  coast  too  inhospitable,  for  the  men  of  trade  and 
traffic  to  approach,  when  large  profits  are  to  be 
realized?  What  privations  and  dangers  will  the 
scientific  traveller  undergo  in  order  to  reach  the 
source  of  some  celebrated  river,  and  thus  leave  his 
name  deeply  engraved  on  the  page  of  fame !  And 
when  gold  is  to  be  gathered  in  large  masses,  how 
many  are  willing  to  forsake  the  comforts  of  home, 
and  to  set  out  on  the  hazardous  journey  in  quest  of 
wealth !  It  is  therefore  evident  that  there  is  no  lack 
of  enterprise  among  those  who  bear  the  Christian 
name.  The  failure  in  the  missionary  work  assigned 
them  must  be  traced  to  some  other  cause.  The  claims 
of  Christ  have  been  looked  upon  as  of  secondary  im- 


18 


206  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


portance,  while  worldly  honour  and  advantages  have 
had  their  attractions,  and  their  full  share  of  influence 
over  the  church  as  well  as  the  world.  Much  of  this 
enterprise  has  been  ill  directed.  The  race  has  too 
often  been  merely  "to  obtain  a  corruptible  crown." 
But  Christians  should  seek  one  that  is  incorruptible. 
And  surely  it  is  not  possible,  with  such  motives  as  the 
Bible  lays  before  us,  and  such  obligations  as  the 
Saviour  has  kindly  imposed,  that  in  the  execution  of 
his  command,  in  the  imparting  of  his  priceless  salva- 
tion to  heathen  nations,  we  shall  fall  behind  the  men 
of  the  world  in  their  spirit  of  enterprise.  In  giving 
this  command  the  Saviour  directs  our  attention  to  an 
object  the  most  lofty  and  important  in  the  universe — 
an  object  that  at  once  involves,  in  the  highest  degree, 
his  own  glory,  the  salvation  of  immortal  souls,  and 
the  spiritual  welfare  of  his  church.  As  the  reward  of 
his  humiliation,  and  as  a  part  of  his  mediatorial  glory, 
the  heathen  have  been  given  to  him  for  his  inheri- 
tance ;  he  has  been  exalted  to  the  throne  of  the 
universe,  and  all  power  in  heaven  and  in  earth  placed 
in  his  hands.  But  although  it  is  his  right  to  reign  in 
the  hearts  of  his  people,  and  over  the  nations  thus 
placed  under  his  mediatorial  sway,  we  see  not  yet  all 
things  put  under  him  in  acknowledged  possession. 
We  see  the  great  majority  of  the  human  family  still, 
m  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth  century,  in  heathen 
blindness,  and  led  away  in  the  service  of  dumb  idols, 
and  with  few  to  care  for  their  immortal  interests  ! 
We  see  the  powers  of  darkness  still  in  possession  of 
the  largest  share  of  a  world  to  be  reclaimed  by  the 


THE    GOSPEL   MUST   BE   SENT.  207 


gospel.  And  we  hear  the  last  and  solemn  command 
of  Messiah  the  Prince  sounding  in  our  ears,  "  Go,  go 
ye,  my  disciples,  into  all  the  world,  and  preach  the 
gospel"  of  my  kingdom  "to  every  creature,  and  lo  !  I 
am  with  you  always." 

The  opinion  so  long  entertained,  even  by  the  most 
evangelical  and  pious  Christians,  in  consequence  of 
the  confused  and  unscriptural  views  that  prevailed 
regarding  the  spread  of  the  gospel  and  the  fulfilment 
of  the  promises,  that  God,  in  his  own  good  time,  and 
in  some  mysterious  way,  but  altogether  independently 
of  their  exertions,  would  spread  the  gospel,  and  con- 
vert the  heathen,  is  now  so  generally  relinquished, 
that  it  appears  unnecessary  to  offer  arguments  to 
show  how  inconsistent  it  was  with  the  plainest  lan- 
guage of  Scripture,  with  apostolic  practice,  and  the 
united  testimony  of  history  and  experience.  Mira- 
cles were  never  performed  with  the  design  of  spread- 
ing the  gospel.  The  Head  of  the  church  has  insti- 
tuted a  system  of  means  to  be  employed  for  this 
purpose  by  his  chosen  people,  and  it  is  in  the  use  of 
these  that  he  carries  forward  the  administrations  of 
his  covenant  among  men,  imparts  the  special  bless- 
ings of  his  grace,  and  "  fulfils  all  the  good  pleasure 
of  his  goodness,  and  the  work  of  faith  with  power." 
"Where  there  is  no  vision  the  people  perish."  Where 
the  means  of  grace  are  not  enjoyed,  men  live,  and 
sin,  and  die,  without  any  saving  knowledge  of  God, 
without  any  hope  in  their  death,  or  any  serious 
desires  after  holiness  or  heaven.  So  far  as  our  infor- 
mation extends,  Christianity  has  never  been  an  object 


208  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


of  inquiry  by  any  people  on  earth,  until  it  was  first 
carried  to  their  shores,  and  pressed  upon  their  accept- 
ance by  the  ambassadors  of  Christ.  In  the  great 
"work  of  evangelizing  the  nations,  the  first  movement 
must  be  made  by  Christian  men.  The  law  must  go 
out  of  Zion,  and  the  word  of  the  Lord  from  Jeru- 
salem. Hence  the  apostles  were  not  to  be  located 
at  Jerusalem  or  in  the  land  of  Judaea,  with  the  ex- 
pectation that  the  heathen  from  the  surrounding  na- 
tions would  come  to  them  as  inquirers  after  the  true 
religion.  Nor  were  they  to  remain  within  the  limits 
of  that  sacred  enclosure  until  all  the  unbelieving 
Jews  should  be  converted  to  Christ ;  or  until  all  the 
good  was  done  at  home  that  might  be  done.  No,  no ; 
they  had  received  instructions  to  the  contrary.  The 
land  of  Judsea,  exalted  to  heaven  as  it  had  been  in 
regard  to  privileges,  must  not  be  permitted  to  mo- 
nopolize the  treasures  of  the  gospel,  sufficient  to 
enrich  a  perishing  world.  Apostolic  men,  who  had 
received  their  commission  directly  from  Christ  him- 
self, felt  they  were  "put  in  trust  with  the  gospel"  for 
the  benefit  of  the  world ;  and  that  in  consequence  of 
this,  they  were  debtors  to  the  Greeks  and  the  bar- 
barians, to  the  bond  and  the  free.  They  felt  con- 
vinced that  the  covenant  of  peculiarity  with  the 
Jewish  nation  was  now  annulled,  and  that  as  the 
middle  wall  of  separation  between  Jews  and  gentiles 
had  been  thrown  down,  the  time  had  indeed  come, 
when  Zion  should  not  only  lengthen  her  cords  and 
strengthen  her  stakes,  but  stretch  out  the  curtains  of 
her  habitation  until  they  should  embrace  gentiles  as 


OUR   OBLIGATIONS.  209 


well  as  Jews,  and  men  of  every  clime  and  colour 
under  heaven.  They  saw  that  the  new  dispensation 
of  the  gospel  was  exactly  suited  to  men  of  all  na- 
tions ;  that  it  was  clogged  with  nothing  peculiar  to 
any  tribe  of  the  human  family,  and  that  it  enjoined 
no  inconvenient  rites  or  costly  oblations.  In  short, 
they  were  brought  to  see  their  duty  clearly,  and  then 
they  hesitated  not  to  prosecute  the  work  assigned 
them — to  prosecute  it  in  the  face  of  danger  and 
of  death,  and  to  rejoice  that  they  were  counted 
worthy  to  labour  and  to  suffer  in  such  a  glorious 
cause. 

And  who  will  say  that  apostles  and  primitive  Chris- 
tians were  more  bound  to  make  such  sacrifices  for 
Christ  and  their  fellow  men,  than  are  Christians  of 
the  present  day  ?  "We  partake  with  them  of  the  same 
grace ;  we  are  equally  indebted  to  the  same  redeem- 
ing love ;  and  we  hope  with  them  to  share  in  the 
same  glories  of  heaven,  and  to  unite  with  them  in 
the  same  song  of  praise  "  to  Him  who  loved  us,  and 
washed  us  from  our  sins  in  his  own  blood."  Nay, 
we  think  it  could  easily  be  demonstrated,  that  our 
obligations  to  spread  the  gospel  are  stronger  than 
theirs.  On  us  rests  the  superadded  obligation  of 
gratitude  for  the  labours  of  missionaries,  by  which 
our  ancestors  were  delivered  from  the  murderous 
rites  of  the  Druidical  religion,  and  brought  out  of  a 
state  of  savage  barbarism  and  gross  idolatry  to  the 
enjoyment  of  Christianity  and  civilization.  Our  pri- 
vileges and  opportunities,  and  our  means  of  reaching 
"the    ends    of  the    earth,"   are   much    greater   than 

18* 


210  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


■were  enjoyed  by  early  Christians;  and  hence  our 
responsibilities  increase  in  the  same  proportion.  We 
live  in  eventful  times.  On  us,  "the  ends  of  the  world 
are  come."  The  world  is  dependent  on  the  church 
for  its  speedy  moral  renovation.  The  present  age  is 
big  with  the  germs  of  future  developments.  All  the 
promises  are  on  the  eve  of  a  glorious  fulfilment. 
Like  the  catastrophes  which  follow  in  quick  succes- 
sion at  the  close  of  a  drama,  it  is  not  unlikely  that 
the  important  events  which  must  precede  the  mil- 
lennium, and  usher  in  the  glorious  jubilee  of  a  world's 
redemption,  will  come  on  with  a  rapidity  which  the 
Christian  world  will  not  be  prepared  to  expect.  No 
time,  therefore,  should  be  lost  in  preparing  for  the 
coming  conflict  with  the  powers  of  darkness.  We 
should  even  try  to  outstrip  the  early  Christians  in 
the  warmth  of  our  zeal  to  convert  the  heathen  to 
Christ,  because  we  have  the  force  of  their  example 
to  stimulate  us,  and  their  wonderful  success  to  en- 
courage us.  We  have  the  wide  world  all  open  be- 
fore us. 

As  a  specimen  of  their  work  of  faith,  and  labour 
of  love,  and  patience  of  hope,  in  the  missionary  enter- 
prise, let  us  present  a  brief  outline  of  what  the  de- 
voted Paul  endured  as  a  soldier  of  the  cross ;  and,  as 
we  give  the  language  of  inspiration,  there  is  no  fear 
of  the  statement  being  exaggerated.  "  I  think,"  says 
the  great  missionary  to  the  gentiles,  "  that  God  hath 
set  forth  us  the  apostles  last,  as  those  appointed  unto 
death,  for  we  are  made  a  spectacle  to  the  world,  and 
to  angels,  and  to  men :   we  are  reviled,  persecuted. 


APOSTOLIC   LABOURS.  211 


defamed,  and  made  as  the  filth  of  the  earth,  and  the 
offscouring  of  all  things.  We  are  troubled  on  every 
side,  perplexed,  persecuted,  cast  down ;  always  bear- 
ing about  in  the  body  the  dying  of  the  Lord  Jesus, 
being  delivered  unto  death  for  Jesus'  sake.  In  all 
things  approving  ourselves  as  the  ministers  of  Christ, 
in  much  patience,  in  afflictions,  in  necessities,  in  dis- 
tresses, in  stripes,  in  imprisonments,  in  tumults,  in 
labours,  in  watchings,  in  fastings."  Regarding  all 
these  personal  trials,  he  could  say,  moreover,  to  the 
praise  of  the  grace  that  had  sustained  him,  that  he 
was  "in  labours  more  abundant,  in  stripes  above  mea- 
sure, in  prisons  more  frequent,  in  deaths  oft."  "  Of 
the  Jews,"  says  he,  "five  times  received  I  forty 
stripes  save  one ;  thrice  was  I  beaten  with  rods ; 
once  was  I  stoned;  thrice  I  suffered  shipwreck;  a 
day  and  a  night  I  have  been  in  the  deep.  In  jour- 
neyings  often,  in  perils  of  waters,  in  perils  of  robbers, 
in  perils  of  mine  own  countrymen,  in  perils  by  the 
heathen,  in  perils  in  the  city,  in  perils  in  the  wilder- 
ness, in  perils  in  the  sea,  in  perils  among  false 
brethren  ;  in  weariness  and  painfulness ;  in  watchings 
often,  in  hunger  and  thirst,  in  fastings  often,  in  cold 
and  nakedness." 

Nor  was  the  apostle  weary  in  the  work  of  well- 
doing, in  consequence  of  the  trials  and  difficulties 
connected  with  it.  On  the  other  hand  he  tells  us 
that  he  "was  glad  to  spend  and  be  spent"  in  this 
blessed  cause ;  though  the  more  he  loved  the  objects 
of  his  benevolent  efforts,  the  less  he  was  loved  by 
them.     lie  "  took  pleasure  in  infirmities,  in  reproaches, 


212  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


in  necessities,  in  distresses  for  Christ's  sake."  He 
considered  all  his  trials  and  sufferings,  his  losses  and 
crosses,  his  dangers  and  afflictions,  as  light  and  mo- 
mentary, and  not  worthy  to  be  compared  with  the 
glory  that  awaited  him,  and  the  love  that  redeemed 
him.  In  such  a  glorious  cause,  and  for  such  a  mas- 
ter, he  felt  that  love  constrained  him ;  that  contempt 
was  honour,  and  present  loss  eternal  gain ;  and  that 
he  possessed  a  secret  source  of  consolation,  of  which 
the  world  was  ignorant.  He  tells  us,  that  "the 
Father  of  mercies  comforted  him  in  all  his  tribula- 
tions, so  that  as  his  sufferings  for  Christ  abounded, 
his  consolation  by  Christ  abounded  also."  In  view 
of  all  these  trials,  he  considered  it  the  highest  honour 
that  could  be  conferred  upon  him,  to  be  an  ambassa- 
dor from  the  throne  of  heaven  to  guilty  men — to  be 
a  co-worker  together  with  God,  in  bringing  souls  to 
the  Saviour,  and  to  be  engaged  in  preaching  "  among 
the  gentiles  the  unsearchable  riches  of  Christ."  He 
was  willing  to  be  made  "  all  things  to  all  men,  if  by 
any  means  he  might  save  some,"  and  "to  please  all 
men  in  all  things,  not  seeking  his  own  profit,  but  the 
profit  of  many,  that  they  might  be  saved."  Wealth 
and  the  world,  ease,  and  honour,  and  pleasure  might 
entice  him  and  tempt  him ;  persecutions,  and  prisons 
and  tortures  might  threaten ;  but  none  of  these  things 
moved  him,  neither  did  he  count  his  life  dear,  that 
he  might  finish  his  course  with  joy,  and  the  ministry 
he  had  received  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  to  testify  the 
gospel  of  the  grace  of  God,  and  to  discharge  the  im- 
portant trust  that  had  been  committed  to  him  on 
behalf  of  heathen  nations. 


ENTIRE    CONSECRATION   REQUIRED.  213 


If  such  -were  the  feelings  and  conduct  of  Paul, 
and  others  of  a  similar  spirit  in  primitive  times, 
why  should  the  professors  of  the  gospel  now  feel 
themselves  excused  from  imitating  the  glorious  ex- 
ample they  have  left  us?  This  example  has  doubt- 
less been  placed  on  record  for  our  benefit,  and  as  a 
model  of  missionary  exertion  for  all  future  ages; 
and  although  few,  if  any,  have  come  up  to  it  in  actual 
practice,  all  are  bound  to  drink  deeply  into  it,  and 
closely  to  imitate  this  heroic  zeal,  and  this  entire 
consecration  to  the  service  of  Him  who  was  heaven's 
first  and  greatest  missionary ;  of  Him  "  who,  though 
he  was  rich,  for  our  sakes  became  poor,  that  we 
through  his  poverty  might  be  rich ;"  and  who,  by  a 
price  no  less  than  that  of  his  precious  blood,  has 
purchased  us  and  all  our  services,  "  that  henceforth 
we  should  not  live  unto  ourselves,  but  unto  him  who 
died  for  us."  If  we  are  indeed  true  Christians,  as 
we  profess  to  be,  "we  are  no  longer  our  own." 
When  we  avouched  the  Lord  to  be  our  God,  and 
gave  ourselves  to  him  in  a  covenant  not  to  be  for- 
gotten, we  gave  up  at  the  same  time,  for  the  pro- 
motion of  his  glory,  all  that  we  possessed  or  ever 
hoped  to  enjoy :  our  time,  our  talents,  our  pro- 
perty, and  our  influence ;  and  having  thus  vowed 
to  God,  we  must  not, — we  dare  not  draw  back. 

Entire  consecration,  then,  is  what  the  Saviour  re- 
quires of  his  disciples,  and  he  will  accept  of  nothing 
less :  Luke  xiv.  26,  27,  33.  But  what  a  very  differ- 
ent standard  do  most  professing  Christians  set  be- 
fore  themselves!      Some,   who   have   long    occupied 


214  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


places  in  the  Christian  church,  seem  to  think  that 
the  missionary  spirit  by  which  others  profess  to  be 
animated  is  a  kind  of  special  gift,  which  may  or  may 
not  be  possessed  by  Christians ;  and  they  are  free  to 
confess  that  they  do  not  possess  such  a  spirit  them- 
selves. Such  persons  seem  to  forget  that  the  mis- 
sionary spirit  is  essentially  the  spirit  of  the  gospel, 
that  it  is  the  very  spirit  of  Christ  himself,  and  that 
"  if  any  man  have  not  the  spirit  of  Christ  he  is  none 
of  his."  Have  not  such  persons,  however  much  they 
may  despise  the  missionary  zeal  of  others  as  fanatical, 
reason  to  fear  that  out  of  their  own  mouths  they  will 
be  condemned,  at  last,  as  unfaithful  stewards?  And, 
if  those  who  take  no  interest  in  the  spread  of  the 
gospel  among  the  heathen,  give  so  little  evidence  of 
having  the  mind  of  Christ,  what  shall  be  said  of  pro- 
fessing Christian  men,  who  actually  oppose  the  work 
of  missions  altogether,  as  a  piece  of  enthusiasm,  and 
feel  no  concern  for  a  world  lying  in  darkness  and 
idolatry  ?  With  regard  to  this  class,  we  think  they 
have  yet  to  learn  the  first  principles  of  Christianity, 
and  that  their  first  business  lies  at  home.  When  they 
have  obtained  an  interest  in  Christ  for  themselves, 
and  have  been  brought  to  put  a  proper  value  on  the 
blessings  of  the  gospel,  it  will  then  be  their  duty,  as 
it  will  be  felt  to  be  a  privilege,  to  inquire  what  they 
can  do  to  bring  others  to  the  Saviour,  whose  com- 
mands they  have  been  taught  to  regard.  We  think 
it  may  be  safely  affirmed,  that  no  Christian,  who  has 
tasted  and  seen  the  grace  and  goodness  of  God  in 
his  own  case,  and  has  had  his  bosom  warmed  and 


REQUIREMENTS  OF  THE  GOSPEL.       215 


expanded  by  divine  love,  will  fail  to  recognise  and 
support  the  cause  of  foreign  missions  when  fairly 
presented.  To  suppose  otherwise  would  be  to  en- 
courage a  spirit  of  antinomianism,  because  the  Bible 
enjoins  on  all,  love  to  man  as  well  as  love  to  God. 
It  would  be  well  for  those  who  would  examine  care- 
fully as  to  their  duty  on  this  subject,  and  who  wish  to 
see  what  the  Scriptures  say  regarding  it,  to  read  the 
first  Epistle  of  John.  The  language  of  inspiration  is 
not  only  forcible,  but  plain  and  not  to  be  mistaken. 
"He  that  loveth  not  his  brother  is  not  of  God." 
"He  that  loveth  not  his  brother,  abideth  in  death." 
"We  ought  to  lay  down  our  lives  for  the  brethren." 
"  If  any  man  say,  I  love  God,  and  hateth  his  brother, 
he  is  a  liar :  for  he  that  loveth  not  his  brother  whom 
he  hath  seen,  how  can  he  love  God,  whom  he  hath 
not  seen  ?  And  this  commandment  we  have  from 
him,  that  he  who  loveth  God,  love  his  brother  also." 
Again,  "  Whoso  hath  this  world's  good,  and  seeth  his 
brother  have  need,"  (and  who  in  such  need  as  the 
perishing  heathen,  our  brethren  according  to  the 
flesh?)  "and  shutteth  up  his  bowels  of  compassion 
from  him,  how  dwelleth  the  love  of  God  in  him  ?"  It 
is  impossible.  The  apostle  by  the  strongest  mode 
of  expression,  denies  that  he  has  any  part  or  lot  in 
this  matter.  Surely,  then,  it  is  not  uncharitable  to 
say,  and  to  say  it  with  emphasis,  How  dwelleth  the 
love  of  God  in  that  heart,  that  has  never  felt  any 
sympathy  for  the  miserable  dying  heathen,  and  has 
never  done  any  thing  to  deliver  them  out  of  their 
deplorable    condition  ?     A    want    of  feeling   for   the 


216  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


wretched  condition  of  idolatrous  nations,  and  a  sel- 
fish disposition  which  withholds  from  them  the  un- 
speakable blessings  of  the  gospel,  freely  provided  by 
the  Saviour,  and  suited  to  their  condition,  make  up  a 
character  as  different  as  may  be  from  that  possessed 
by  Christ  and  his  apostles,  and  which  essentially 
belongs  to  every  true  Christian.  We  are  of  opinion 
that  if  this  scriptural  argument  were  properly  weighed 
and  brought  home  in  its  application,  by  ministers 
of  the  gospel,  to  the  consciences  of  professing  Chris- 
iians,  many  who  are  now  at  ease  in  Zion  would  be 
led  to  discover  the  utter  inconsistency  of  their  past 
conduct   with   the   clearly  revealed   requirements   of 

God's  word. 

But  leaving  these  higher  principles  of  the  oracles 
of  God,  which  call  for  an  elevated  standard  of  philan- 
thropy, we  might  come  down  to  those  which  can  be 
better  understood  by  men  accustomed  to  act  from 
motives  of  a  lower  order,  and  show  that  the  principles 
of  common  humanity  and  of  common  justice,  of  moral 
honesty,  and  of  faithfulness  to  the  trust  committed 
to  us  by  the  Head  of  the  church,  all  bind  us  to  dis- 
charge this  important  duty  to  the  heathen,  and  lay 
us  under  obligations  from  which  we  cannot  escape. 
What  would  we  think  of  the  man  in  whose  hands  the 
government  of  his  country  had  placed  a  sovereign 
remedy,  a  specific  for  certain  diseases,  with  the  ex- 
press injunction  to  employ  it  for  the  benefit  of  all 
who  might  stand  in  need  of  its  healing  influence; 
but  who,  unfaithful  to  his  trust,  or  from  a  love  of 
ease,  would   either  lock   up   the   precious   medicine, 


17 


INJUSTICE    OF   NEGLECT   OF   MISSIONS.  217 


or,  at  most,  impart  it  to  a  few  of  his  frienas  and 
neighbours,  whose  urgent  wants  could  be  met  without 
any  special  exertion  on  his  part  ?  Or,  in  what  esti- 
mation should  he  be  held,  for  justice  and  honesty, 
who,  as  executor  of  a  will,  would  appropriate  to  his 
own  sole  use  the  whole  of  a  testamentary  bequest, 
of  which  he  was  only  one  of  the  legatees,  at  the  same 
time  neglecting  to  inform  the  other  parties  of  their 
interest  in  the  inheritance,  and  making  no  efforts 
whatever  to  distribute  the  property,  as  directed  by 
the  testator  ?  We  have  every  reason  to  believe  that 
such  an  one  would  become  the  scorn  of  society,  and 
be  publicly  reprobated  by  every  lover  of  humanity 
and  justice.  Much  more  unjust  are  they,  however, 
and  much  more  guilty  of  betraying  a  solemn  trust 
placed  in  their  hands,  who,  holding  as  a  sacred  de- 
posit, the  balm  of  Gilead  for  the  healing  of  the 
nations,  refuse  to  apply  it  to  the  perishing ;  or,  who 
being  "  put  in  trust  with  the  gospel"  for  themselves 
and  others,  neglect  to  proclaim  it  to  every  creature. 
The  sin  of  such  conduct,  too,  is  greatly  aggravated 
from  the  consideration  that  all  the  blessings  of  the 
gospel  have  come  to  us  through  the  free  grace  of 
God ;  that  they  have  been  handed  down  to  us  through 
the  sacrificing  labours  of  Christ  and  his  apostles ; 
and  that  instead  of  being  diminished  by  a  gene- 
rous distribution,  great  personal  advantages  are  de- 
rived by  all  who  dispense  them  freely  to  their  fellow- 
men. 

The  gospel  is  a   scheme  of  philanthropy  worthy 
of  its  author,  and  designed  to  inspire  with  the  same 

19 


218  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


heavenly  influences,  the  bosom  of  every  participant 
in  its  blessings.  It  allows  us  to  press  to  our  hearts 
all  its  promises  and  blessings,  and  to  rejoice  in  its 
privileges,  but  it  will  not  allow  us  to  monopolize  them, 
or  in  our  own  selfishness  and  solitude  to  steal  to 
heaven  alone,  careless  and  unconcerned  about  the 
salvation  of  others.  The  great  maxim  of  true  Chris- 
tians has  ever  been,  "  The  love  of  Christ  constraineth 
us."  "It  is  more  blessed  to  give  than  to  receive." 
How  far  removed  from  selfishness  was  Paul,  when 
he  exclaimed,  "  I  am  made  all  things  to  all  men,  if 
by  any  means  I  might  save  some."  "  I  please  all 
men,  in  all  things,  not  seeking  mine  own  profit,  but 
the  profit  of  many  that  they  may  be  saved."  Oh  for 
the  heart  and  spirit  of  Paul  to  animate  the  church 
of  Christ  in  these  days.  Oh  for  the  zeal  of  primitive 
Christianity  to  arouse  us  from  our  slumbers,  and  to 
stimulate  us  to  noble  and  heroic  deeds  for  the  honour 
of  Christ,  and  the  salvation  of  a  lost  world.  Then, 
instead  of  looking  upon  the  toils  and  sacrifices  of 
the  missionary  work  as  hard  to  be  endured,  there 
would  be  a  pious  strife  among  Christians  as  to  who 
should  be  honoured  with  a  commission  "to  go  far 
hence  to  the  gentiles."  To  be  a  co-worker  with 
Christ  in  the  labour  of  love  would  then  be  considered 
as  an  unspeakable  privilege  and  honour.  Many  would 
then  gladly  spend  and  be  spent — take  pleasure  in 
infirmities,  in  reproaches,  in  necessities,  in  persecu- 
tions, in  distresses  for  Christ's  sake  and  his  gospel. 
Multitudes  would  instinctively  rush  forward  to  sus- 
tain and  carry  on  with  their  prayers  and  their  con- 


STIMULANTS   TO   ACTIVITY.  219 


tributions  the  great  missionary  cause,  so  dear  to  all 
their  hearts.  The  Spirit  would  be  poured  out  in 
answer  to  the  prayers  of  the  whole  church,  as  on 
the  day  of  Pentecost.  Christ  would  gird  his  sword 
upon  his  thigh,  and  ride  forth  victorious  among  the 
nations.  God,  our  own  God,  would  bless  us.  God 
would  bless  us,  and  all  the  ends  of  the  earth  would 
fear  him. 

4.  The  grounds  of  encouragement  and  the  signs  of 
promise  which  Providence,  at  the  present  time,  holds 
out  to  the  Christian  world,  regarding  the  extension 
of  the  Redeemer's  kingdom  among  the  heathen,  should 
stimulate  all  who  love  the  cause  to  increased  activity. 
It  is  natural  that  those  who  have  been  contributing 
and  praying  for  the  extension  of  the  gospel  in  heathen 
lands,  should  inquire  as  to  the  progress  it  has  been 
making,  and  the  prospects  of  its  future  success ; 
and  when  satisfactory  information  on  these  subjects 
can  be  furnished,  it  is  calculated  to  give  a  fresh 
impulse  to  the  cause,  and  to  arouse  the  friends  of 
missions  to  put  forth  still  greater  efforts  in  its  be- 
half. It  ought  to  be  remembered,  however,  that 
success  in  the  Lord's  work  is  not  to  be  the  rule  of 
the  church's  duty.  The  king  in  Zion  has  a  right  to 
demand  the  services  of  his  subjects  irrespective  of 
success ;  and  it  may  please  him,  for  the  wisest  of  pur- 
poses, to  call  us  out  to  the  most  difficult  undertaking, 
simply  on  the  ground  of  an  explicit  command,  without 
granting  an  express  promise  of  success.  Thus  for 
the  exercise  of  his  faith,  Abraham  was  called  to 
forsake  the  land  of  his  fathers,  and  to  go  out  to  a 


220  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


strange  country  which  he  should  afterward  possess 
for  an  inheritance;  and  "he  went  out,  not  know- 
ing whither  he  went."  But  the  Saviour  has  not 
left  his  missionary  servants  without  ample  encour- 
agement. He  has  promised  to  be  with  them  always, 
pledged  himself  to  grant  success  to  their  labours,  and 
in  numerous  instances  has  he  fulfilled  his  engagements 
by  making  his  gospel  "  mighty  to  the  pulling  down  of 
strongholds." 

If  we  take  a  glance  at  the  whole  work  of  modern 
missions  to  the  heathen,  and  trace  the  progress  of  the 
gospel  among  the  barbarous  and  semi-civilized  nations 
during  the  last  fifty  years,  we  shall  find  that  the  suc- 
cess that  has  followed  these  labours,  has  been  not 
only  fully  proportioned  to  the  efforts  that  have  been 
made,  but  it  has  even  far  exceeded  all  reasonable 
expectations.  It  must  be  remembered,  however,  that 
the  enterprise  of  foreign  missions  may  be  said  to  be, 
as  yet,  only  in  its  infancy.  Many  of  us  can  well 
remember  when  the  subject  had  not  even  been  talked 
of  in  real  earnest,  or  as  one  of  a  practical  nature, 
and  when  it  might  be  said  that  nothing  had  been 
contributed  to  the  cause.  We  can  all  recollect  the 
time  when  foreign  missionaries,  about  to  be  sent  out 
to  some  heathen  land,  were  looked  upon  with  astonish- 
ment, as  men  tinctured  with  fanaticism,  and  as  the 
heroes  of  some  great  romance,  whose  life,  and  all 
that  the  world  holds  dear,  must  be  thrown  aAYay  in 
attempting  to  secure  a  visionary  object,  and  as  call- 
ing more  for  the  pity  than  the  prayers  and  co-opera- 
tion of  the  Christian  world !     But  these  days  have 


A    GREAT    "WORK    YET    TO    BE    DONE.  221 


passed  away,  and  we  hope  they  are  gone  for  ever. 
Those  who  were  once  most  sceptical  on  this  subject, 
are  now  abandoning  their  former  opinions,  and  are 
disposed  to  think  that,  after  all,  the  cause  may  be 
a  good  one,  and  may  be  finally  crowned  with  favoura- 
ble results. 

But  although  such  wonderful  changes  have  been 
going  on  in  the  minds  of  many  regarding  the  work 
of  missions — and  this  we  must  not  overlook  as  a  part 
of  the  success  that  has  attended  it — yet  we  must  not 
forget  that  even  the  warmest  friends  of  the  good 
cause,  and  those  who  have  been  all  along  its  ablest 
advocates,  are  only,  as  it  were,  awaking  to  discover 
the  infinite  importance  and  magnitude  of  the  under- 
taking ;  and  that  those  who  have  sacrificed  most  of 
property  or  person  on  this  altar,  have  done  almost 
nothing  compared  with  what  must  be  done,  and  what 
will  be  done,  when  Christians  shall  have  drunk  more 
deeply  into  the  spirit  of  Christ,  and  when  they  shall 
live  entirely  to  his  glory,  and  for  the  advancement  of 
his  kingdom. 

To  make  a  full  development  of  the  success  that 
has  attended  missionary  operations,  would  be  to  write 
a  history  to  show  the  effects  of  Christianity  on  the 
world  at  large.  This,  of  course,  cannot  now  be  at- 
tempted. And  even  if  it  were,  there  are  thousands 
of  things  which  enter  into  the  matter  of  success,  and 
form  a  part  of  these  advantages,  which  could  not  be 
noticed.  There  is  no  standard  by  which  the  spiritual 
blessings  conferred  by  the  gospel  could  be  measured. 
And  even   laying  aside   the  consideration  of  these 

19* 


222  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


as  beyond  all  calculation,  who  can  fully  estimate  the 
temporal  advantages  that  have  been  conferred  upon 
heathen  lands  and  the  world  at  large,  through  the 
instrumentality  of  Christian  missions?  In  order  to 
obtain  an  impressive  view  of  this  subject,  we  should 
look  back  to  the  situation  of  those  countries  in  Europe 
at  the  commencement  of  the  Christian  era,  which  are 
now  enlightened  by  the  gospel,  and,  through  its 
salutary  influence,  raised  to  such  a  high  degree  in 
the  scale  of  civilization  and  social  happiness.  And 
coming  still  nearer  to  our  own  times,  we  should  con- 
trast the  state  of  the  islanders  of  the  North  and 
South  Pacific  now  with  what  it  was  about  thirty 
years  ago,  before  the  gospel  began  to  make  an  im- 
pression on  their  savage  character.  Indeed,  if  we 
look  at  this  subject  fairly  and  fully,  we  must  be  con- 
vinced that  wonders  have  been  effected,  and  be  led 
to  thank  God  and  take  courage,  while  we  exclaim, 
"  What  hath  God  wrought !" 

Since  the  commencement  of  the  modern  missionary 
enterprise,  what  an  amount  of  knowledge  of  distant 
parts  of  the  earth  has  been  acquired  through  the  in- 
defatigable zeal  and  enterprise  of  missionaries,  who 
have  discovered  nations  before  unknown,  and  de- 
scribed the  peculiarities  of  their  religious  and  social 
state !  By  the  same  agency,  how  many  warlike  and 
roving  tribes  have  been  reconciled  to  each  other, 
saved  from  extinction,  and  finally  led  to  adopt  habits 
of  civilized  and  domestic  life,  of  economy  and  indus- 
try! How  many  strange  and  barbarous  languages 
have  been  reduced  to  writing,  by  missionary  industry, 


KESULTIXG    BLESSINGS.  223 


and  the  poor  savages  that  used  them,  taught  for  the 
first  time  to  read,  in  their  own  tongue,  the  ■wonderful 
■works  of  God!  How  many  editions  of  the  Bible 
have  been  issued  in  foreign  languages,  and  distri- 
buted by  the  hands  of  missionaries  in  foreign  climes ! 
How  many  books  in  literature  and  religion  have  they 
prepared!  How  many  of  the  heathen  themselves 
have  been  educated  in  mission  schools,  and  fitted 
for  the  important  work  of  instructing  others,  and 
of  preaching  the  gospel  to  their  degraded  country- 
men !  How  has  the  mental  and  moral  character  of 
the  most  stupid  heathen  been  raised  and  restored  to 
the  rank  of  humanity !  Good  laws  and  good  habits 
have  been  introduced,  humane  conduct  inculcated, 
and  even  the  work  of  benevolence  commenced  in 
places  where,  before,  nothing  but  selfishness,  tyranny, 
and  sin  reigned  triumphant.  Although  the  task  has 
been  difficult,  something  also  has  been  done  toward 
elevating  the  female  character  to  that  place  in  society 
for  which,  by  nature,  women  are  so  eminently  quali- 
fied ;  a  boon,  however,  which  all  unevangelized  na- 
tions, whether  savage  or  civilized,  have  denied  them. 
Through  the  efforts  of  missionaries,  an  extensive 
knowledge  of  Christianity  has  been  disseminated  in 
many  heathen  lands.  Idolatry  has  been  unmasked 
and  undermined ;  and  in  many  places  it  gives  signs 
of  tottering  and  decay.  The  flames  of  the  suttee 
have  been  quenched.  Gross  superstitions,  which  once 
controlled  the  minds  of  all,  now  produce  shame. 
Thousands  who  once  bowed  down  to  filthy  idols,  and 
carefully  observed  the  obscene  rites  of  heathenism, 


224  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


are  now  humble  and  devout  worshippers  at  the 
feet  of  Jesus ;  while  thousands  more,  washed  in  his 
atoning  blood,  unite  in  his  praises  before  the  throne 
above.  Has  not  something  been  actually  effected  in 
the  modern  missionary  work,  when  more  than  one 
thousand  Christian  churches,  including  some  hun- 
dreds .of  thousands  of  members,  gathered  from  the 
heathen  world,  have  been  established  in  the  midst  of 
idolatry,  and  when  multitudes  of  heathen  youth  are 
now  being  educated  in  mission  schools  on  Christian 
principles  ?  Thus  the  Lord  has  been  pleased  to  give 
testimony  to  the  word  of  his  grace,  and  has  not  left 
himself  without  witnesses  to  the  power  of  his  gospel. 
These  are  things  which  have  not  been  done  in  a 
corner.  The  labours  of  missionaries  are  before  the 
world,  and  they  are  beginning  to  attract  the  attention 
of  all  true  philanthropists  in  every  land. 

But  while  we  may  thus  briefly  enumerate  a  few  of 
the  results  of  Christian  missions,  it  is  impossible  to 
estimate  the  results  in  all  their  accumulating  in- 
fluences throughout  time,  and  during  an  endless  eter- 
nity. If  but  a  single  soul  has  been  saved,  through 
this  instrumentality,  that  soul  is  of  more  value  than 
ten  thousand  worlds !  It  has  been  delivered  from 
all  the  untold  agonies  of  an  endless  hell,  and  raised 
to  the  unspeakable  joys,-  and  progressive  glories  of 
an  eternal  heaven.  When  any  one  can  solve  the 
all-important  problem  put  forth  by  the  Saviour,  as 
to  what  is  to  be  gained  or  lost  by  the  acquisition  of 
the  whole  world,  at  the  expense  of  the  undying  soul, 
then   may  we  be  able   to  calculate   the   importance 


MAGNITUDE    OF   THE   CONQUEST   MADE.  225 


of  the  -work  that  aims  to  snatch  immortal  men  from 
eternal  wrath,  and  to  impart  to  them  that  knowledge 
which  maketh  wise  unto  salvation;  the  importance 
of  that  work  which  is  the  means  instrumentally  of 
rooting  and  grounding  them  in  the  love  of  the  truth 
as  it  is  in  Jesus,  so  as  to  enable  them  "  to  compre- 
hend with  all  saints,  what  is  the  breadth,  and  depth, 
and  length,  and  height,  and  to  know  the  love  of 
Christ,  which  passeth  knowledge ;"  the  importance  of 
that  work,  which  effects  an  eternal  reconciliation  be- 
tween God  and  the  sinner,  and  sheds  abroad  in  the 
heart,  "  the  peace  of  God,  which  passeth  all  under- 
standing." 

And,  if  the  salvation  of  but  one  soul  is  a  matter 
of  such  infinite  importance — if  it  brings  such  a  reve- 
nue of  glory  to  God,  and  such  inexpressible  and 
never-ending  happiness  to  man,  what  must  be  the 
magnitude  of  the  conquest  that  has  even  already 
been  made  in  the  territories  of  heathendom  during 
the  last  half  century,  when  this  is  multiplied  by  the 
hundreds  of  thousands  of  idolaters,  who,  through 
grace,  have  believed  on  the  Saviour ;  and  who,  though 
sunk  in  the  pollutions  of  paganism,  have  been  Avashed, 
and  sanctified,  and  justified,  in  the  name  of  the  Lord 
Jesus,  and  by  the  Spirit  of  our  God !  Eternity  alone 
will  be  able  to  unfold  all  that  has  been  accomplished 
through  missionary  instrumentality.  The  work  is 
still  in  its  infancy — as  heretofore  we  have  only,  as 
it  were,  been  laying  the  foundation,  and  preparing 
some  of  the  instruments  to  be  employed  in  erect- 
ing the  glorious  superstructure  to  the  praise  of  sovc- 


t . 


226  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


reign  grace.  Nothing  less  is  contemplated  than 
the  conversion  of  the  world  to  God,  and  the  uni- 
versal reign  of  Messiah  over  the  nations.  Who 
can  contemplate  the  past,  or  look  forward  to  the 
future,  without  emotions  of  gratitude  to  Him,  who  is 
the  author  and  the  finisher  of  the  glorious  enter- 
prise, or  without  feeling  encouraged  to  prosecute  a  work 
which,  finally,  must  meet  with  universal  and  triumph- 
ant success? 

5.  In  conclusion,  we  now  desire  to  address  a  few 
words  to  the  theological  students,  the  young  people 
and  youth  of  our  churches,  to  whom,  especially,  we 
dedicate  this  little  volume.  You,  my  young  friends, 
who  have  been  baptized  in  the  name  of  Christ,  and 
who  sustain  so  intimate  and  interesting  a  relation 
to  the  church  of  God ;  you  who  have  been  brought  up 
by  pious  parents,  in  the  nurture  and  admonition  of 
the  Lord,  and  have  been  thoroughly  instructed  in 
Sabbath-schools  and  Bible-classes,  are  objects  of 
deep  solicitude.  It  is  to  you  we  look  for  the  men 
and  the  women,  who  are  to  carry  forward  the  ark 
of  God  into  the  lands  of  promise.  This  honour  is 
reserved  for  you.  The  men  who  left  Egypt  cannot 
enter  in  because  of  unbelief.  They  have,  indeed,  for 
your  encouragement,  made  a  few  conquests  among 
the  Amorites  and  the  Moabites — among  the  outposts 
of  heathenism,  on  this  side  Jordan — but  the  glori- 
ous battles  to  be  fought,  and  the  victories  to  be  won 
by  the  Calebs  and  the  Joshuas — the  men  who  have 
been  trained  up  to  endure  hardness  in  this  campaign, 
and  to  make  the  necessary  sacrifices  in  the  coming 


REPLIES   TO    OBJECTIONS.  227 


conflict  with  the  nations  of  idolatry,  leagued  against 
the  gospel  of  the  Son  of  God,  remain  for  you,  my 
dear  friends,  and  they  will  afford  a  fine  field  for  a 
display  of  faith  and  patience,  Christian  heroism  and 
perseverance. 

You  are  the  hope  of  the  church.  You  are  soon  to 
become  the  ministers,  the  missionaries,  the  elders,  the 
devoted  members  of  our  Zion.  The  Saviour  looks  to 
you  to  carry  out  to  the  very  letter  the  command  that 
he  gave  to  his  people  more  than  eighteen  hundred 
years  ago,  but  which  to  this  day  remains  unfulfilled. 
Angels  and  glorified  spirits  look  with  intense  in- 
terest as  to  how  you  will  perform  the  important 
part  assigned  you.  The  heathen,  perishing  in  their 
sins,  are  imploring  you  to  give  them  the  gospel 
remedy.  The  missionaries,  almost  worn  out  under 
the  burden  and  heat  of  the  day,  with  the  immense 
field  of  their  operations  still  widening  around  them, 
are  calling  on  you  to  prepare  yourselves  for  the 
work,  and  to  come  over  and  help  them.  There  is 
no  time  for  delay,  as  "the  harvest  is  perishing  for 
want  of  labourers,"  and  souls,  that  might  have  been 
made  acquainted  with  the  gospel,  are  sinking  down 
to  death,  in  all  the  darkness  and  dreariness  of  su- 
perstition. 

But  I  think  I  hear  some  of  my  serious  but  timid 
young  readers  say,  "  The  work,  in  which  you  invite 
us  to  engage,  is  one  of  great  difficulty  and  danger. 
It  calls  for  many  sacrifices  and  privations,  and  re- 
quires a  degree  of  piety  and  devotion  to  the  cause 
of  Christ  which  we  do  not  possess."     Now,  I  have  no 


228  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


doubt  but  such  are  very  common  objections,  and  that 
they  are  often  formed  into  an  excuse  in  order  to  evade 
the  obligations  which  the  Saviour  has  kindly  imposed 
upon  his  people.  Still,  such  objections  require  a 
plain  and  serious  reply.  We  would  be  far  indeed 
from  pressing  into  so  important  a  department  of  the 
Lord's  work,  young  men,  whose  hearts  have  not  been 
entirely  given  up  to  God,  and  who  are  not  prepared 
to  brave  any  danger  at  his  command,  and  for  the 
promotion  of  his  glory.  To  such  we  would  say, 
"What  man  is  there  that  is  fearful,  and  faint-hearted? 
Let  him  go  and  return  to  his  house,  lest  his  brethren's 
heart  faint  as  well  as  his  heart."  Deut.  xx.  8.  Yet, 
why  should  not  every  Christian  be  prepared  to  give 
up  all  for  Christ,  and  to  go  to  the  ends  of  the  earth 
at  his  bidding?  The  language  of  the  Saviour  him- 
self is  very  strong  on  this  point.  "  If  any  man  come 
to  me,  and  hate  not"  (in  comparison  with  his  love  to 
me)  "his  father  and  mother,  and  wife  and  children, 
and  brethren  and  sisters,  yea,  and  his  own  life  also, 
he  cannot  be  my  disciple."  "And  whosoever  doth 
not  bear  his  cross,  and  come  after  me,  cannot  be  my 
disciple."  And  again,  "Whosoever  he  be  of  you, 
that  forsaketh  not  all  that  he  hath,  he  cannot  be  my 
disciple."  "No  man  can  serve  two  masters."  The 
Lord  Jesus  will  not  recognise  any  half-hearted, 
double-minded  followers.  He  that  is  not  with  him 
entirely,  in  his  feelings,  plans,  and  desires,  is  against 
him.  Your  first,  and  all-important  duty,  dear  young 
friends,  is  to  accept  of  Christ,  as  he  is  offered  to  you 
in  the  gospel,  as  "  all  your  salvation  and  all  your 


REPLIES   TO    OBJECTIONS.  229 


desire,"   and  then  to  give   yourselves  to  him  unre- 
servedly, "  in  a  covenant  not  to  be  forgotten." 

Until  these  important  matters  have  been  fully  set- 
tled between  God  and  your  own  souls,  we  dare  not 
urge  you  to  engage  in  any  Christian  duty,  much  less 
in  the  important  work  of  missions  among  the  heathen. 
All  the  piety  which  a  Christian  can  possess  is  called 
into  exercise  in  his  labours  among  a  suspicious  and 
ungrateful  people,  and  it  is  only  when  he  has  been 
for  a  long  time  among  the  heathen  that  he  begins  to 
find  out  how  little  grace  he  really  possesses.     With- 
out piety  of  a  high  order,  a  foreign  missionary  would 
indeed  be   "of  all  men  the  most  miserable."     But 
why  should  not  all  Christians  seek  and  obtain  a  high 
degree  of  piety  ?     This  is  their  duty  wherever  it  may 
be  the  will  of  God  to  cast  their  lot,  and  it  is  called 
for  especially  in  the  present  age,  when  the  field  of 
Christian  activity  is  Avidening,  and  the   demand  for 
devoted  men,  at  home  and  abroad,  is  daily  increasing. 
Eminent  piety,  zeal,  and  benevolence  are  required  in 
order  to  extend  the  work  of  missions  at  home  and 
abroad.     Nor  can  we  expect  to  witness  such  Almighty 
displays  of  power  and  grace,  in  the  conversion  of  the 
heathen,  as  would  be  desirable,  until  Ave  see  the  peo- 
ple of  God  everywhere  living  less  to  themselves  and 
more  to  the  glory  of  their  Saviour. 

There  is  another  very  common  objection  to  the  in- 
crease of  foreign  missionary  operations,  which  we 
have  often  heard  made  during  our  late  visit  to  the 
United  States,  made,  too,  not  only  by  members  and 

elders,  but  also  by  ministers  of  the  gospel!      The 

20 


/ 


230  MISSIONS    IN   HINDUSTAN. 


objection  is  this :  That  we  have  heathen  enough  at 
home,  and  that  as  charity  ought  to  begin  at  home, 
there  is  no  use  of  going  to  heathen  lands,  until  these 
unbelieving  multitudes,  perishing  at  our  very  doors, 
have  been  converted  to  God ;  and  until  all  our  new 
and  destitute  settlements  have  been  supplied  with 
gospel  ordinances.  Now,  at  first  sight,  this  appears 
to  be  a  very  plausible  objection,  and  to  many  minds, 
whose  inclinations  run  in  this  channel,  it  may  seem 
to  be  unanswerable.  And,  as  it  is  likely  it  may  have 
an  immense  influence  on  the  minds  of  young  men 
preparing  for  the  ministry,  we  think  it  ought  to  be 
carefully  examined.  We  admit  that  there  are  many 
careless  and  hardened  unbelievers  in  Christendom, 
and  living,  too,  sometimes  at  the  very  doors  of  Chris- 
tian churches ;  but,  however  such  characters  may 
excel  in  wickedness,  we  deny  that  they  are  heathen, 
or  that  they  will  be  judged  by  the  same  law  as  the 
heathen.  Who  in  Christian  lands  has  not  heard  of 
the  great  salvation  ?  May  not  all  obtain  a  Bible, 
either  for  a  small  sum,  or  as  a  gratuity  ?  Might  not 
all  in  Christian  lands  enjoy  the  means  of  grace,  if 
disposed  to  make  a  little  exertion  for  that  purpose, 
and  if  the  church  would  only  properly  adjust  her 
ministerial  strength?  Those  miscalled  heathen  will 
be  judged  by  the  revealed  law  of  God,  which  they 
have  broken,  and  by  the  gospel  which  they  have 
despised  and  rejected. 

Even  granting  that  some  heathen  idolaters  could 
be  found  within  the  borders  of  Christian  nations, 
would  that  be  any  good  reason  for  confining  the  gos- 


REPLIES   TO    OBJECTIONS.  231 


pel  to  these  defined  limits,  when  the  command  of 
Christ  runs,  "  Go  ye  into  all  the  world,  preach  the 
gospel  to  every  creature  ?"  "When  this  command  was 
first  given,  all  in  Judsea  were  not  Christians:  many 
were  heathen.  "When  the  preachers  of  the  gospel 
left  Jerusalem,  and  travelled  as  far  as  Phenice,  and 
Cyprus,  and  Antioch,  all  the  Jews  in  that  ill-fated 
city  had  not  embraced  Christianity.  "When  Paul  and 
Barnabas  were  sent  to  the  gentile  nations,  as  foreign 
missionaries,  by  the  church  at  Antioch,  all  in  that 
city  and  neighbourhood  had  not  renounced  idolatry. 
When  Paul,  in  a  vision,  was  called  over  unto  Mace- 
donia, it  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  all  the  heathen  in 
Asia  Minor  had  been  converted  to  God.  And  when 
this  same  enterprising  missionary  took  his  journey 
into  Spain,  and  travelled  round  about  unto  Illyricum, 
preaching  the  gospel,  how  many  unevangelized  na- 
tions did  he  leave  behind  him,  and  within  the  circle 
of  his  operations ! 

We  see,  then,  that  such  policy  as  that  to  which  we 
have  referred,  meets  with  but  little  countenance  from 
Scripture.  It  is  directly  opposed  to  the  command  of 
Christ,  and  to  apostolic  example.  The  Saviour  knew 
better  than  we  can  know  what  plan  was  best  adapted 
to  extend  his  kingdom  in  the  world ;  and  it  is  much 
safer  to  obey  his  command,  and  to  imitate  Scripture 
example,  than  to  lean  to  our  own  understanding,  or 
to  follow  the  dictates  of  worldly  wisdom.  The  Chris- 
tian church  cannot  expect  to  prosper,  while  she  lives 
in  manifest  neglect  of  any  of  Christ's  institutions. 
The  most  important  of  these  is  to  be  found  in  the  last 


232  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


command  he  uttered  on  earth,  by  which  he  consti- 
tuted his  disciples,  and  all  succeeding  followers,  into 
a  missionary  church,  that  they  might  teach  all  na- 
tions;  that  they  might  preach  the  gospel  to  every 
creature;  preach  repentance  and  the  forgiveness  of 
sins  among  all  nations,  and  be  his  witnesses  to  the 
uttermost  parts  of  the  earth. 

The  subsequent  labours  of  the  apostles  and  primi- 
tive Christians,  in  publishing  the  gospel  so  extensively 
through  the  known  world,  showed  how  they  under- 
stood these  express  commands  of  their  Master  in 
heaven,  and  how  all-important  they  considered  the 
missionary  work  as  an  institution  of  his  appointment. 
And  why  should  not  the  church  now,  the  whole 
church,  and  every  component  member  of  it,  feel  as 
much  bound  to  advance  this  institution  of  Christ — so 
important  to  the  spread  of  his  mediatorial  glory — as 
any  other  divine  institution  in  the  Bible.  This,  how- 
ever, is  far  from  being  the  case.  Men  may  live  and 
die  in  the  church,  and  be  considered  as  good  mem- 
bers, who  do  nothing  whatever  to  promote  the  mis- 
sionary cause.  These  very  persons  would  be  shocked 
should  men,  living  in  neglect  of  the  public  worship 
of  God,  of  baptism,  and  the  Lord's  supper,  still  be 
regarded  as  good  members  of  the  Christian  church, 
while  they  themselves  continue  in  the  total  neglect 
of  an  institution  of  the  gospel  as  positive  and  impor- 
tant as  any  other;  and  to  this  hour,  profess  to 
feel  under  no  binding  obligation  whatever,  to  aid  in 
giving  the  gospel  to  the  heathen.  Is  there  not  a 
most  glaring  inconsistency  here,  to  say  nothing  of  a 


THE   YOUNG    EXHORTED.  233 


plain  dereliction  of  a  most  important  duty  ?  And 
how  can  such  Christians  expect  to  enjoy  the  pre- 
sence of  Christ  and  the  comforts  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  so 
long  as  they  refuse  to  take  any  part  in  the  world's 
evangelization,  and  -while  they  neglect  a  precious 
privilege  and  means  of  grace  ?  We  know  that  hereto- 
fore many  Christians,  through  ignorance,  and  the 
power  of  had  example,  have  thus  lived  inconsistently, 
and  far  below  their  duty ;  yet  the  times  of  this  igno- 
rance having  been  winked  at,  God  now  commands  his 
people  to  repent,  and  for  the  time  to  come,  to  do  works 
meet  for  repentance.  It  is  especially  desirable  that 
young  disciples,  just  commencing  their  career  in  the 
Christian  life,  should  form  correct  opinions  on  this 
subject;  and  then  resolve,  in  the  strength  of  promised 
grace,  fully  and  faithfully  to  discharge  their  obliga- 
tions to  Christ  and  the  perishing  heathen. 

In  pressing  this  subject  on  the  minds  of  our  young 
friends,  however,  Ave  like  to  present  it  in  the  light  of 
a  privilege — an  unspeakable  honour,  of  which  we  are 
most  unworthy.  What  an  exalted  privilege  to  be 
"labourers  together  with  God;"  to  "be  ambassadors 
for  Christ,"  either  among  the  heathen,  or  in  the 
midst  of  our  brethren  in  Christian  lands !  To  be 
associated  with  the  persons  of  the  glorious  Godhead, 
in  such  labours  of  love,  and  to  be  instrumental  in 
leading  souls  to  Christ,  are  blessings  too  great  to 
be  enjoyed  by  sinful  mortals.  Yet,  "this  honour 
have  all  the  saints.     Praise  ye  the  Lord." 

The  observance  of  this  institution,  for  the  spread 
of   Christ's  kingdom,   is  also    attended  with    special 

20* 


234  MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


blessings  to  believers.  It  calls  into  exercise  many 
Christian  graces,  which  strengthen  by  use.  Their 
faith  is  evinced  and  increased  by  every  effort  made  to 
comply  with  the  divine  command.  Their  hopes  are 
strengthened  by  realizing  the  fulfilment  of  the  pro- 
mises regarding  the  conversion  of  the  heathen  to  God. 
Their  affections  are  placed  on  spiritual  objects  and 
pursuits,  instead  of  grovelling  in  carnal  and  earthly 
pleasures.  Their  benevolence  is  directed  to  a  proper 
channel,  so  as  to  produce  glory  to  God  and  good  to 
men.  Their  zeal  finds  an  unlimited  field  for  its  exer- 
cise, and  their  prayers  an  object  of  such  solicitude  as 
to  keep  them  always  near  the  throne  of  grace  as  sup- 
pliants. Thus,  by  an  observance  of  the  foreign  mis- 
sionary institution,  God  will  be  honoured,  Christ's 
kingdom  established,  religion  proved  to  be  divine,  and 
recommended  to  the  world,  believers  edified  and  pre- 
pared for  glory,  and  the  gospel  be  spread  throughout 
all  the  nations  of  the  earth. 

Before  closing  these  remarks,  allow  me  to  offer  to 
my  young  friends  a  few  suggestions  for  their  serious 
consideration. 

1.  Make  yourselves  well  acquainted  with  the  state 
of  the  heathen  world,  and  the  efforts  that  are  being 
made  for  its  evangelization. 

2.  By  a  careful  study  of  the  Scriptures,  particu- 
larly of  Christ's  parting  command  to  his  disciples,  and 
of  the  efforts  of  the  apostles  and  early  Christians  to 
spread  the  gospel  through  the  world,  endeavour  to 
learn  your  duty  to  Christ  and  to  the  heathen ;  and, 
through  divine  grace,  try  to  discharge  it. 


THE   YOUNG   EXHORTED.  235 


8.  Contemplate  the  providence  of  God,  -which,  in 
this  remarkable  age,  is  preparing  a  highway  among 
the  nations,  for  sending  the  gospel  to  every  race 
and  tribe  of  men,  and  consider  if  this  is  not  a  loud 
call  on  the  Christian  world,  to  go  up  in  all  their 
strength  to  the  help  of  the  Lord  against  the  mighty. 

4.  Let  the  fact  that  India,  with  one  hundred  and 
fifty  millions  of  souls,  is  now  open  to  the  gospel,  lead 
young  men,  preparing  for  the  ministry,  to  inquire  if 
it  is  not  the  duty  of  many  of  them  to  labour  in  this 
benighted  land.  They  should  often  look  at  their 
letter  of  instructions,  which  reads,  "  Go  ye  into  all  the 
world,  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature." 

5.  Let  the  apathy  of  the  church,  on  the  subject  of 
foreign  missions,  in  times  past,  stir  up  all  the  friends 
of  the  cause  to  increased  zeal  and  diligence  for  the 
future ;  and  let  no  discouragements  that  may  arise 
in  the  prosecution  of  this  great  work,  cause  any  to 
despair  of  success,  since  it  is  secured  by  the  promises 
of  infallible  truth. 

6.  Since  prayer  is  the  appointed  means  for  obtain- 
ing a  blessing  on  missionary  labour,  let  all  plead  the 
promises  in  reference  to  the  spread  of  the  gospel. 
Let  the  monthly  concert  of  prayer,  as  a  special  season 
for  supplication,  be  attended  by  all  who  long  and 
look  for  the  coming  of  Christ's  kingdom. 

7.  As  all  who  sincerely  pray  for  the  spread  of  the 
gospel  will  necessarily  take  a  deep  interest  in  the 
success  of  missions,  and  will  do  what  they  consist- 
ently can  to  carry  forward  the  great  cause,  wo 
strongly  recommend  to   all  the  adoption  of  the  sy%- 


236  -MISSIONS   IN   HINDUSTAN. 


tern  of  benevolence  suggested  by  the  Apostle,  1  Cor. 
xvi.  2,  that  there  may  be  no  Avant  of  the  means 
required  by  the  church  for  the  evangelization  of  the 
world. 

8.  In  all  our  attempts  to  promote  the  missionary 
cause,  let  the  love  of  Christ  constrain  us.  And  feel- 
ing that  we  are  not  our  own,  and  that  we  live  not  to 
ourselves,  let  us  esteem  it  a  great  honour  to  aid,  by 
our  prayers,  our  personal  labours,  and  our  contribu- 
tions, in  promoting  this  great  work,  which  brings 
"glory  to  God  in  the  highest,  on  earth  peace,  and 
good-will  to  men." 

9.  As  an  important  crisis  has  now  come  for  bless- 
ing the  world,  no  time  should  be  lost  in  availing  our- 
selves of  the  advantages  offered.  Whatever  we  do, 
should  be  done  quickly.  The  heathen  are  perishing, 
and  souls,  infinitely  precious,  will  soon  be  beyond  the 
reach  of  our  influence. 

Dear  readers,  it  is  evident  that  the  times  in  which 
we  live  are  pregnant  with  most  important  events, 
which  must  soon  burst  upon  us,  startle  the  world 
from  its  slumbers,  and  arouse  the  friends  of  Christ  to 
make  sacrifices  and  efforts  in  his  cause,  such  as  have 
not  yet  been  thought  of.  The  church's  conflict  with 
the  powers  of  darkness  on  the  field  of  foreign  missions 
has  already  commenced,  and  must  now  be  prosecuted 
until  a  complete  and  glorious  victory  be  achieved — 
until  heathenism,  Avith  all  its  gross  superstition  and 
bloody  rites,  shall  be  overthrown,  and  the  kingdom  of 
the  Prince  of  Peace  be  established  in  its  stead.  The 
church  is  now  in  the  valley  of  decision,  and  "  the  day 


THE   YOUNG   EXIIORTED.  237 


of  the  Lord  is  near  in  the  valley  of  decision."  Joel 
iii.  14.  There  is  no  discharge  in  this  war,  which  is 
to  decide  between  the  cause  of  truth  and  the  delu- 
sions of  a  blind  superstition.  Every  friend  of  Christ 
must  now  be  firm  and  decided.  "  Victory  or  death," 
must  be  the  watchword  to  pass  along  the  marshalled 
ranks  of  "the  armies  of  the  living  God."  " For 
Christ's  crown  and  covenant"  must  be  the  motto  in- 
scribed on  their  waving  banners.  "  None  of  us  liveth 
to  himself"  must  stand  out  in  living  characters  on 
the  breastplate  of  every  soldier  of  the  cross.  "Holi- 
ness to  the  Lord"  must  be  written  on  all  the  muni- 
tions of  war.  Not,  "  whom  shall  we  send,  and  who 
will  go  for  us  ?"  or  "  0,  my  Lord,  send,  I  pray  thee 
by  whom  thou  wilt  send,"  must  be  the  language  of 
the  young  recruits,  but  " Here  am  I,  send  me!"  must 
be  the  response  from  thousands  of  hearts  throbbing 
with  desire  to  labour  for  Christ,  "far  hence  among 
the  gentiles."  Watchfulness  and  prayer,  patience 
and  perseverance,  zeal,  regulated  by  sound  judgment, 
an  ever-burning  love  to  Christ,  must  mark  the  charac- 
ters of  all  sent  out.  A  "willing  mind,"  a  disposition 
to  honour  God  with  their  substance,  under  the  convic- 
tion that  it  is  all  his  own,  and  entirely  at  his  disposal, 
and  that  "it  is  more  blessed  to  give  than  to  receive," 
must  constitute  the  ruling  principles  of  those  who 
remain  at  home.  A  liberality,  based  on  Christian 
-principles,  prompted  by  a  sense  of  solemn  obligation 
to  redeeming  love  and  grace,  controlled  not  by  im- 
pulses and  appeals,  but  according  to  a  well-formed 
plan,  and  in  due  proportion  to  the  means  possessed, 


2S8  missions  ra  Hindustan. 


furnishing,  not  little  from  much,  but  much  from  little, 
and  sustained  bv  economy  and  self-denial,  must  be 
practised  generally  by  the  whole  body  of  Christians. 

It  is  when  the  church  of  Christ  as  a  whole,  and 
every  member  of  this  sacred  corporation,  shall  have 
been  brought  to  feel  and  to  act  in  this  manner,  that 
we  may  expect  the  millennium.  And  why  should  they 
not.  at  once,  thus  acquit  themselves  like  men  and  like 
Christians,  and  be  strong  in  the  Lord,  and  in  the 
power  of  his  might  ?  Does  not  the  captain  of  salva- 
tian  require  every  true  Christian  soldier,  especially  at 
this  critical  juncture,  to  do  his  duty,  to  do  it  faithfully 
and  fully  ?  Let  Christians,  then,  arise  at  once,  and 
slumber  no  longer  over  Christ's  positive  command. 
Let  them  hold  forth  the  word  of  life  to  the  dving 
heathen,  and  "shine  as  lights  in  the  world."  Con- 
strained bv  the  love  of  Christ,  and  under  an  abiding 
and  overwhelming  sense  of  their  obligations  to  God, 
let  them  live,  and  act,  and  suffer,  and  sacrifice  with 
an  earnestness,  a  constancy,  and  a  cheerfulness  be- 
coming a  cause  so  awfully  momentous.  Thus  acting 
for  the  divine  glory,  God  will  not  be  ashamed  to  be 
called  their  God.  He  will  identify  himself  with  their 
interests  because  they  are  his  own,  and  render  their 
efforts  efficient  to  the  accomplishment  of  his  gracious 
purposes.  Hi.-  Spirit  will  be  poured  out  from  on  high, 
and  a  general  revival  of  true  and  undefiled  religion 
will  be  the  consequence.  The  hearts  and  affections 
of  Christians  of  all  evangelical  denominations  will  be 
united,  and  the  divisions  of  Zion  will  be  healed  upon 
a  proper  basis.     "The  watchmen"  on  her  wall?  "shall 


THE   HOUR    OF   TRIUMPH.  239 


lift  up  the  voice ;  with  the  voice  together  shall  they 
sing ;  for  they  shall  see  eye  to  eye,  when  the  Lord 
shall  bring  again  Zion."  The  love  of  Christ  shall 
dispose  multitudes  of  his  people  to  run  to  and  fro, 
to  proclaim  the  glorious  truths  of  the  gospel  to  the 
heathen  nations,  and  these  shall  be  fully  sustained  in 
their  labours  by  the  overflowing  treasury  of  the 
church.  Thus  "  the  whole  earth  shall  be  full  of  the 
knowledge  of  the  Lord,  as  the  waters  cover  the  sea." 
"All  the  ends  of  the  earth  shall  then  remember  and 
turn  unto  the  Lord,  and  all  the  kindreds  of  the  na- 
tions shall  worship  before  him."  "All  kings  shall 
fall  down  before  him,  all  nations  shall  serve  him." 
Then  the  waves  of  missionary  effort  and  influence, 
widening  and  rolling  onward  and  onward,  will  finally 
swell  into  a  sea  of  glory  that  shall  spread  from  pole 
to  pole;  and  then  will  be  heard  the  voice  "of  a  great 
multitude  of  all  nations,  and  kindreds,  and  people, 
and  tongues,"  and  "as  the  voice  of  many  waters,  and 
as  the  voice  of  many  thunderings,  saying,  Alleluia, 
for  the  Lord  God  omnipotent  reigneth." 


THE   END. 


BTEKEOTYI'ED   BY   L.   JOHH80N  *  CO. 
PHILADELPHIA. 


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